Zyperis, if you want a clematis that will be fragrant and pinkish, try looking at Betty Corning. She is very vigorous and has pendulous pinkish flowers that have a fragrance. The fragrance won't compete with your roses since it is more subtle but she is one great clematis. She is also a type III pruning class which basically means that midwinter to early spring, you just whack her back to within a couple inches of the ground and let her come back up the following growing season. She is also a viticella hybrid and is therefore more resistant to clematis wilt than are the normal large flowering hybrids like Nelly Moser. The blooms are smaller but occur in higher quantities. The small flowering clematis are a group that is much underplanted in my opinion.

Here is a link that might be useful: Betty Corning.

Zyperiris, since you are new to clematis, I'd like to invite you to a class I will be presenting at Valley Nursery in Poulsbo on June 12th. Generally, we would have a lot of blooming clems in stock at that time for you to choose from and I'll help you with all the specifics about growing them in our climate and pruning techniques. You could certainly select and plant earlier, but many growers, and especially new clematis gardeners, like to choose them while they are in bloom.

Gig Harbor is not all that far a drive and if you haven't visited Valley Nursery previously, it's worth a trip just for that......the best nursery on the Kitsap Peninsula!

Okay!

Nelly needs some shade or she sunburns and fades badly.

I see Betty Corning as lavender rather then pinkish but I love her and she does not fade in sun.

she is the lighter colored one in this photo (this trellis is nine feet tall)

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BorS, I have always had a hard time describing the flowers on BC simply because they can look differnt colors depending on the lighting and what other clematis she is planted with. I have her similarly paired with a dark purple clematis, Viola in my case.

Etoille Violette for me :)

nckvilledudes, I agree. Whether it's clematis, roses or whatever. I prefer easy care and beautiful. All of my clematis, except three (one-type 2 and two-type 4), are type 3 (group C) with several viticellas.

So what do most of you feed your Clematis..Mine are not thriving at all!

Same thing I use for roses - Rosetone and alfalfa pellets.

Same as I feed my roses - Rosetone and alfalfa pellets. And lots of water.

When Clematis is not thriving, it is usually cultural problems, not lack of fertilizers. You have to make sure that the soil and light are good, that there is no a severe root competition with other plants, and that the pruning is correct. If you prune your Clematis hard for the first 2-3 years (and every year for type 3), you encourage forming a good root system. With undeveloped roots, your Clematis will never thrive.

As for fertilizer, I use Rose-tone, Tomato-tone, and Plant-tone - all of them are organic.