Clematis of the Month for November 2016

Section: Viorna
Subsection: Integrifoliae
Species: C. integrifolia var. integrifolia and C. integrifolia var. latifolia
Distribution: Poland, The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Lower Austria, Hungary, The Balkans, Asia (part), Southern Russia, Western Siberia, Kazakhstan, East-Turkestan
Flowering: June – October
Habitat: Steppes, meadows with alternating humidity, in thickets and margins
First Recorded: C. Linnaeus, Species Plantarium 1:544, 1753

The flowers of Clematis integrifolia are single and campanulate. Flowers are 2 cm in diameter. Tepals 4.3-5 cm long. The anthers are yellow and a beautiful part of the flower. The flowers are mostly single flowers in wild plants. The flowers arise from within a pair of leaves on new shoots. The color of the flower of the wild species is variable; violet, mauve or blue. The seeds are medium and germinate very well after 3-6 months.

Every year the new stems arise from the sleeping plant and the stems grow to a maximum of 80 cms but mostly shorter. The leaves are directly positioned to the stem and this is unique for the subsection Integrifoliae. After flowering you can prune down the stem so that you get new young stems and more flowers later.

Clematis integrifolia is a very useful Clematis placed in the garden in the border between garden plants. In the beginning the plant needs a enough space so that it can grow without problems for the first few years. The best place in the garden is a sunny place but during Spring and Summer it must have enough water. This species is a very strong garden plant and I have had this species for at least 25 years in the garden. Now there are many different cultivars with different colors so that you can combine this Clematis very well with all kinds of garden plants.

The first cultivars/hybrids were made around 1800. The oldest known is from 1811 named Clematis ‘Divaricata’ and from 1818 named Clematis ‘Diversifolia’. Clematis integrifolia has been always interesting for hybridizers and therefore there are a lot of named integrifolia cultivars/hybrids. There are also a lot of taller growing cultivars/hybrids with integrifolia blood/characteristics. There are known at least 100 cultivars/hybrids but some have disappeared over the years. I made some crossings, which have never been done before, with Clematis cadmia and the results are strong scented flowers. With C. courtoisii the crossing gives plants 2 m high and typical dark flowers. With C. hancockiana the flowers of the crossings have the typical hancockiana color and sepals.

Collecting and sowing seeds from your integrifolia plants in the garden is very interesting because the results of the seedlings can give plants with different colors. The seeds germinate rather easily after 4-8 months.

Pruning is not needed as the plants start growing the following year with completely new stems.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

 
Ton Hannink