Clematis Mrs Cholmondeley

The 'Mrs Cholmondeley' clematis is a popular climbing clematis variety known for its multitude of large, intensely lavender-blue flowers with distinct sepals! It is a fast-growing climber that attaches itself using tendrils and its voluble stems, using frayed supports such as trellises, fences, or the branches of deciduous bushes. It is covered in graceful, bright green trifoliate foliage in spring, which quickly becomes adorned with 16 to 22 cm (6 to 9in) diameter flowers that bloom again in September. This cultivar has good vigour and a medium size, making it a perfect choice for flowering a balcony railing or adding verticality to a planted terrace. Hardy, it just needs to be placed in a bright location without scorching sun in well-drained, moist, and rich soil.

The genus Clematis belongs to the ranunculaceae family. The 'Mrs Cholmondeley' clematis is an English horticultural creation obtained by Charles Noble in 1873.

It is a woody, climbing perennial plant with short stems, reaching 3 m (10ft) in height with a spread of 1 m (3ft). The deciduous leaves fall in winter. They are bright green, composed of 3 ovate to lanceolate leaflets measuring 3 to 7 cm (1 to 3in) long and 1.5 to 5 cm (1 to 2in) wide, with relatively prominent veins. The round-shaped single flowers consist of 6 to 7 oval to rounded, overlapping and pointed sepals. They have a width of 16 to 22 cm (6 to 9in) in diameter. The flowers are light lavender blue with creamy white stamens topped with light chocolate anthers. The flower colour tends to fade when fully open, especially when the plant is grown in a very sunny exposure. This clematis attaches itself to the support or host plant by means of voluble stems with petioles transformed into tendrils. The flowers are followed by round and feathery silver fruits that remain decorative until winter.

Plant your clematis in the company of your climbing roses or vines to extend the flowering of your walls and pergolas until the end of summer. This is a diverse genus, with varieties available in all colours, shapes, and sizes. Take advantage of their ease of cultivation to give your garden a romantic and bohemian touch. To avoid heat stress and drying out at its base, make your life easier by planting your clematis in the shade of a ground cover perennial or a bush. Thanks to its medium size, 'Mrs Cholmondeley' will easily find its place in a small garden and will be perfectly happy in a pot on a balcony or next to an entrance door, embracing a trellis against a wall to welcome visitors with its magical colours. These light blue flowers pair perfectly with shrubs and perennials in golden tones. Consider Mexican orange blossoms, chartreuse flowers of lady's mantle, or golden hops. Alternatively, combine it with paniculate hydrangeas like 'Diamant Rouge' or a climbing rose with white flowers like 'Aimée Vibert' or 'Blush Noisette'.