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Gentle reader, you say toe-MAY-toe. I say toe-MAH-toe. It is very much the same in the gardening world with the plant we are talking about today. The pronunciation squabble goes like this: I call it kle-MAT-is, and some of my gardening friends call it KLEM-uh-tis.
However you say it, I think we can all agree that clematis (this is the proper spelling) is beautiful and worthy of a second look. For those of you who have been with me for a while, I first wrote about this plant in 2022 — and I added it to my gardens solely because of its name.
It happened innocently enough. I was strolling through the garden center when I happened upon a stunning beauty named Ville de Lyon. The name brought back memories of a vacation Hubby Steve and I took to Lyon, France, so of course this plant jumped right into my shopping cart and said, "take me home."
She was not the first clematis in my garden, but she is absolutely the reason I have added more over the last few years. This plant has done so well, and it requires so little, that it is truly a no-brainer. It was easy to propagate as well — I now have three of them growing in different spots throughout my gardens.
Before I share some pictures of the clematis kinfolk (that's farm talk for relatives) who have moved in with Ville de Lyon, let me share a few things I learned about this plant family before I decided to add more.
Clematis are divided into groups that tell you how the plant will flower, when it will flower, and how you should prune it.
Be very careful about pruning these, or you may remove the parts of the plant that will bear next year's flowers. Group 1 clematis typically bloom in early spring with large flowers. Prune only after blooming, and only remove dead or damaged growth.
The flowers are a bit smaller, and these normally bloom in spring or early summer. You can prune for size control if needed, but know that cutting back to old wood will limit your flower show.
These have larger flowers that often appear from late spring through fall. Group 3 clematis actually flourish with a hard or rejuvenation prune — cutting the plant back to about 12 inches tall — in late winter or early spring. This signals the plant to put on lots of new growth and abundant flowers throughout the season.
Ville de Lyon is a Group 3 clematis — it blooms on new wood.
I cut my Clematis 'Ville de Lyon' back to about 8 inches in February, and she is already at the top of her six-foot trellis.
I discovered something while walking around my gardens this week: I have a clear preference for flowers that are either gloriously oversized or those that send up a stalk of tiny blooms that work together to make a statement. Not sure why I'm sharing that, but it was an interesting thing to notice.
The standard clematis flower is a large blossom with six or seven petals, measuring 5–6" across — which fits my taste perfectly. There are also cultivars with smaller blossoms, double blossoms, and lovely bell-like flowers. Colors range from white to wine red, lavender to deep purple, and there are even a few yellow ones.
One thing to keep in mind: it can take several years for a clematis vine to mature and begin flowering vigorously. To shorten the wait, purchase a plant that's at least two years old — at garden centers, those are typically the ones in quart- or gallon-size pots.
Clematis are happiest with cool shade at their roots and warm sun on their foliage, so plan to plant something at the base to shade the roots. If you'd rather not compete with those flowers visually, a nice ornamental grass makes a lovely textural contrast. Whatever you choose, I'm sure it will be just perfect.
My personal preference is to always choose Group 2 or Group 3 clematis, so that no matter how carried away I get with my pruners, I will still have flowers.
Next up in my garden is Samaritan Jo. She is a Group 3 clematis and begins blooming in early spring. Her flowers start as a luminous white with just the slightest hint of purple at the edges, and as each flower ages, the purple deepens — as you can see in the photo below. She doesn't sprawl and climb with quite the same wild abandon as Ville de Lyon, reaching only about 4–5 feet tall, but she does manage to fill out her trellis beautifully by the end of the season. She looks regal and cultured to me, and I really like that about her.
Clematis 'Samaritan Jo'
My last two selections have only been in my gardens about a year and a half, so they have not yet begun to reach their full potential. I planted them together and set them growing up the same trellis, thinking the color combination would be magnificent. Unfortunately, I did not pay close enough attention to their bloom times.
They are a bit like the characters in the movie LadyHawke — have you seen it, gentle reader?
It is the story of cursed lovers who can only glimpse each other in the fleeting moments between sunrise and sunset. By day, Isabeau is a hawk riding on the shoulder of her true love Navarre. At sunset she turns back into a woman just as Navarre turns into a great black wolf — and so it goes, day after day. It's not exactly the same with Guernsey Cream and Duchess of Albany, but it's close enough to make me feel for them.
Guernsey Cream has large leaves and bold, handsome flowers that open as pale green and mature to a smooth creamy white, often reaching six inches across.
He is a Group 2 clematis, blooming on both old and new wood. This was his first year blooming really well — and the trouble is, now he is done. While he is still handsome to look at, Guernsey is not going to complement my fair lady the Duchess of Albany quite the way I had hoped.
Clematis 'Guernsey Cream'
Clematis 'Guernsey Cream'
Clematis 'Guernsey Cream' Seedhead
I only got one bloom from the Duchess last year and missed getting a photo of it, but I've included a few images from the internet. She is budded out this year, so hope is not lost.
Clematis 'Duchess of Albany'
The Duchess is a Group 3 clematis blooming on new wood — and she is very delicate.
I cannot tell you how many times I have snapped off a shoot trying to coax her higher on the trellis. Her flowers are on the smaller side and never fully open, holding instead that soft tulip shape you see in the photos.
Clematis 'Duchess of Albany'
My one bloom last year looked more like the photo above — a much softer pink, which I adore. Wouldn't she and Guernsey Cream be a perfect match, if only they could get their timing straight?
Gentle reader, my only hope for these star-crossed lovers is that as the plants mature, there may yet be a small overlap in their bloom windows — and I will finally see them together. My other option is to take the pruners to Guernsey and force him to bloom again on new wood later this season. A bit cruel, I know, but I am not above trying it.
So, good friends: study your plant tags carefully before pairing plants together. And for those of you hoping for a happy ending — here is your silver lining. All those shoots I broke off trying to get these two to climb and mingle have made me quite skilled at propagating clematis from cuttings. If anyone is interested, I may have some very pretty plants to share next year!
FURTHER READING
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