What about C. languinosa 'Candida'. That one blooms early in my yard and has large, perfect white flowers.

But I would suggest you ask over at the Clematis forum also, there are some very knowledgable growers over there.

I think that info from gardeners in your zone, in your area can provide more exact info because even once-bloomers may have a different blooming time depending on different zones.

Candida is very pretty, thank you. It is a Type II, I see, so it looks promising that it will bloom with the roses. I may get either this one or Arctic Queen.

I did post on the clematis forum, but made the mistake of posting within a thread rather than starting a new one - oopsie.

Niobe is the only Clematis I have that blooms at the same time as Dr Huey... They are similar color... Niobe is a type II.

You want a Clematis that is listed as blooming in May, or listed as an 'early' bloomer...

Do you want it to bloom at the same time as the rose? Or do you want it to take up the gap when the rose is done? I really love the Vitacella clematis. They don't bloom until summer, but then they just keep blooming & blooming. They are easy to grow & you can cut them to the ground in late fall, early spring.

One of my earliest blooming clematis is Gernsey Cream...it would be nice with Dr. Huey... I actually grow Sweet Autumn clematis over Dr. Huey to cover him up and get some fall interest.

Robert

Some Group II bloom before Dr Huey does in our yard. That is the doctor in the lower right of that pic. I went back through the photo files the last couple years to double check and:
Miss Bateman blooms before DH
Gillian Blades still has a few blooms on her when DH starts
Nelly Moser (foliage on the fence near DH) has a few blooms left when DH starts blooming
Mrs N Thompson starts blooming with DH
The President starts before and is covered while DH is blooming
Hagley Hybrid starts with DH - full bloom is after DH is done
Niobe starts with DH - full bloom is after DH is done
Pink Fantasy starts before and is covered while DH is blooming
Henryi starts with DH - full bloom is after DH is done
Ernest Markham starts with DH - full bloom is after DH is done
Dr Ruppel starts before and is covered while DH is blooming
Pink Champagne blooms before DH starts

They are pretty consistent for us.

Thank you!! This is exactly what I needed to know. I am leaning towards Pink Fantasy or Henryi.

Wait a minute... COTW says that Pink Fantasy is a group III and won't start blooming until midsummer. Are you sure, Diggerdave?

You are right. I should have checked COTW. I am positive about when it blooms though :) I'm one of those very strange people that keeps track of the garden with pics. When I click on the link to the the Pink Fantasy page and the thumbnails show.... when I pass the cursor over a thumb, the filename appears in the lower bar of the window. All my photos have the date they were taken in them. For example: pfan060907ca1.jpg is the filename of Pink Fantasy taken June 9, 2007. I take pics when the first bloom opens on each plant. Dr Huey's 1st blooms opened 6/1/07 and Pink Fantasy started 5/24/07. By 6/9/07, both were covered with blooms. PF has started blooming a week before the doctor here for the 4 years we have had PF.

Pink Fantasy does bloom on new growth and does qualify as Group III in our yard. Growth is early and very vigorous. You can see the new growth all the way to the ground in some of the pics. PF is a good clematis but not one of my favorites. I like the clear pink color of Hagley Hybrid blooms better than the muddy pink of PF. Deb likes PF more. I added a few more pics to the Pink Fantasy page.

All 4 of our Henryi are monsters by the way. 2 will be moved soon because they are shading the roses around them.

OK, I admit it. I am the only person strange enough to keep track of the garden with pics the way I do :) I feel much better now, LOL. It was nice thinking another/others might be that wierd for a few minutes. Deb laughed so hard when she read the preview that I had to add this admission *sigh*

I think keeping track of the garden with photos is a very good idea. You never know when you are going to need to go back and check on something that you never would have thought to write down.

You are a wealth of knowledge, Digger. Thank you.

I have no idea which to choose. Must think it over...

Christine

My pleasure :) I'm not an expert but can say how plants do for us. Taking your time thinking about it is the best idea. There are some very knowledgable clematis growers out there on the web. I read what they say and use their experience.... That said, clematis seem to do what they want to once we plant them. Some supposed to be stingy have become bloom machines here. Some supposed to be fantastic... aren't, LOL.