Which clematis montana to choose?

8 years ago

Mayleen, Odorata ,or Montana Rubens all look beautiful in pictures, so it's hard to decide. I am looking for one with dark-coloured leaves (one I think has burgundy/dark brownish-green leaves, but don't know which it is). I'd also prefer to get the one which has the most "saturated" colour. I don't mean dark, like Freda; I want the cool pink colour. Can anyone help?

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gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)

8 years ago

I would just go with Rubens. It is a tried and true selection that has been around for ages and is usually easy to find. Or if you can find it, C. montana var. rubens 'Pink Perfection'.

The leaves do not show that bronzy red coloring all season....that tends to be present only with early growth in spring and maybe to some extent in fall. And be sure to allow plenty of room for this vine to grow and a decent support structure.....it gets BIG and is listed with the "no prune" grouping (of course you can but need to do so immediately after the bloom cycle). I posted this photo earlier this year of one growing near me:

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Comments (8)

User
8 years ago
That is stunning Gardengal.
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Amazindirt (7a TN)
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Mayleen is my personal favorite. It's also the one known for having burgundy young leaves, though those will turn a dark green as they age. It is not the darkest of the pink montanas, but it's a nice color -- and it's very heavily scented.

You can see the burgundy leaves and the flower color in this pic:

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/g22_Zov0X4U/maxresdefault.jpg
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User
Original Author
8 years ago
Amazindirt, which one is the darkest of the pink montanas? Love your forum name, btw!
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
8 years ago
Most consider Clematis montana var. rubens 'Tetrarose' as the darkest pink culitvar.
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Amazindirt (7a TN)
8 years ago
Here are a couple of good places to compare varieties, keeping in mind that many of the varieties mentioned are not available in the US:

http://www.britishclematis.org.uk/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=260

https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/Search-Results?query=Clematis%20montana
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gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
8 years ago
OP is in Italy, IIRC. Selections there may be greater.
User thanked gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
User
Original Author
8 years ago
Thank you all! As a general rule,I'd say that selections of many if not most plants are greater in thr UK,but a lot of on-line nurseries don't seem to ship to Italy.