Clematis florida ‘Sieboldii’

Every year I add new plants to my garden, often a lot of new plants!  One of this year’s acquisitions is a lovely Clematis florida ‘Sieboldii’.  I popped this little beauty into a tall, charcoal grey ceramic pot and it hasn’t yet stopped blooming.

Clematis florida ‘Sieboldii’ – smothered in blooms and buds in July

Clematis florida (as you might guess from the name) isn’t reliably hardy here, so I’ll protect it over the winter.  I’ve already brought it into my little greenhouse and soon it will migrate into the garage, where all my favorite tender plants get to hang out between December and February, just in case old man winter decides to give us a slap or two.

Spectacular!

So why bother growing a clematis that needs coddling when there are umpteen dozen perfectly hardy cultivars?  Well, I thought it was because the flowers of this particular variety are outstanding, intricate and fabulous but now I realize that’s only half the story.

Still going strong in mid-October

If I’d had any clue how floriferous this plant would be I would have counted the blossoms it produced (and continues to produce) since it began flowering in June.  Then I could impress people by saying “it’s had 50, or 500, or 5,000 flowers this season”.  Actually that probably wouldn’t impress very many people, only freaks like me who think that’s cool.

Blooming in the greenhouse in November

Anyhow, I gotta say, I love this clematis!  It’s earned the right to winter in the garage and I’m looking forward to enjoying even more beautiful blossoms next year.  It’s also going straight onto the list of my favourite plants.

November blooms on my Clematis florida ‘Sieboldii’