Clematis Vitalba

Often seen scrambling through hedges and trees, Clematis vitalba is the UK’s native, wild clematis, better known by its romantic folk names – Traveller’s Joy and Old Man’s Beard. It’s a wonderful plant for a wildlife-friendly garden: beneficial pollinators, including bees and hoverflies, are attracted to its flowers, the leaves are a food plant for a variety of moth species whilst the seeds are enjoyed by birds such as goldfinches. From July to September, it produces masses of small greenish-white flowers with prominent fluffy stamens which are faintly almond-scented. The flowers develop into silky balls of seed heads which persist through the winter and look wonderful backlit by the low winter sun. Pruning group 3. Maximum height: 4-8 m. Spread: 2.5-4m.