I have this spot in front of my shed building that faces east but gets full sun until 3 oclock or so. I would like to put a clematis here in front of the building just to the right of the door. (I am going to remove the privet shrub first). My concern is that the sun will reflect off of the metal and burn up the vine. Can clems be planted in front of metal buildings?

I've never tried it and don't have a metal building for experimenting. Could you buy some kind of tuteur, obelisk or any other structure and put the clematis 5' away from the shed?

I will put it on a trellis of some kind, but I can't put it that far out because I have a walk space there.

I wish I had the answer for you but I have no idea how far the reflected heat might affect a clematis.

personally, I wouldn't worry about the heat bothering the vine itself, or the foliage or flowers, but i'd be a little concerned about keeping the roots cool and hydrated. we have a similar issue on our east facing shop wall. our shop is a dark brown and it gets HOT by 9 am! we mounted a trellis to the wall as suggested above, but we also put 4 inch spacers behind it, to leave a little "breathing room" for the foliage as well. seems to work ok for us. the afternoon shade seems to be a welcome thing on hot days!

oh, I am not worried about the roots, I will shade them with other plants and rocks. I am just worried about the foliage getting too much sun reflected off the metal and burning it.