Clematis Blue Ravine - Clématite hybride à grandes fleurs Blue Ravine

The clematis ‘Blue Ravine’ is a variety remarkable for the size and nuanced colouring of its flowering. Large, almost flat and slightly undulate, its flowers oscillate between lavender blue, pale mauve and rosy parma violet depending on the light. More pronounced veins run across the sepals to a heart of reddish-purple stamens. The first flowering, generous, occurs in spring, followed by a second, slightly more modest one in late summer. This vigorous, but not overly large, variety charmingly adorns a trellis, arch or fence. A position sheltered from scorching sun will better preserve its bluish tones.

This climbing plant belongs to the Ranunculaceae family. Its leaves fall in autumn, while its woody stems bear some of the flowers the following spring. 'Blue Ravine' belongs to the group of early large-flowered clematis, which includes the former Patens and Fortunei groups. It was raised in Canada by Conrad Eriandson in 1978, then introduced by the botanical garden of the University of British Columbia. Its international registration dates from 1996. Its parentage pairs ‘Nelly Moser’ and ‘Ramona’: the former passed on its spring flowering and sepals marked with a central band, while the latter is one of the old lavender-blue clematis with dark stamens. The stems of ‘Blue Ravine’ reach 2.50 to 3 m in length. They attach to their support via the leaf petioles, which can twine around wires, twigs or thin trellis bars. On a wall or fence, it is therefore essential to install a trellis slightly spaced from the surface. The deciduous foliage, composed of oval leaflets, is a medium green. The flowers bloom in May-June on the previous year's stems, then in September on the current year's growth. They measure 15 to 20 cm in diameter and have six to eight quite narrow, large sepals with undulate edges and a tapered tip. Their ground colour, a light mauve-blue to lavender, is emphasised by a darker central band and veins. The centre presents a cluster of stamens with purplish-red anthers. The flowers appear bluer in soft light; intense sun makes them fade faster and accentuates their mauve tones. Very hardy, this clematis withstands down to –29 °C in well-drained soil. Like other large-flowered hybrids, it can be affected by clematis wilt: planting quite deeply allows new stems to regrow from the stump in the event of an attack.

On an arch or trellis, this clematis ‘Blue Ravine’ can be paired with the climbing rose ‘Pink Ghislaine de Féligonde’; its small pale pink pompons will not mask its large flowers. You can also combine it with the clematis viticella ‘Alba Luxurians’ which flowers all summer, but this latter will need to be trained on another support as it is pruned harder in late winter. At its base, the masterwort ‘Roma’ will flower in silvery-pink tones and the Brunnera ‘Alexander’s Great’ will carpet the ground with large silver leaves. Leave 40 to 50 cm between the stump of the clematis and that of a rose or shrub to limit root competition.