Clematis 'The President'

Common Name: clematis 

Type:

Vine

Family:

Ranunculaceae

Zone: 4 to 8

Height: 8.00 to 10.00 feet

Spread: 2.00 to 4.00 feet

Bloom Time: May to September

Bloom Description: Purple-blue

Sun: Full sun to part shade

Water: Medium

Maintenance: Low

Flower: Showy

Tolerate: Deer, Black Walnut

Culture

Grow in fertile, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. Vining hybrids are best sited in locations where the flowering parts of the vine are in sun to part shade but the roots are shaded. Some light afternoon shade is usually beneficial in hot and humid summer climates such as the St. Louis area. Clematis vines need a trellis or other support on which to grow. Roots should be kept cool, shaded and uniformly moist. Root areas may be shaded with perennials, annuals or small shrubs. A thick root mulch is appreciated. Do not allow soils to dry out.

'The President' is pruned as Group 2. See pruning instructions below.

Noteworthy Characteristics

Clematis is a genus of over 250 species, most of which are woody to semi-woody deciduous vines climbing by twining leaf stalks or in some cases trailing over support, but in a few cases grow as freestanding or sprawling herbaceous perennials and small deciduous or evergreen shrubs. Most have flat, cupped or bell-shaped flowers. Some plants feature ornamental fluffy seed heads in autumn. Plants bear opposite, simple to compound leaves which are usually deciduous but sometimes evergreen. Compound leaves range from lobed to trifoliate to biternate to pinnate to bipinnate. Clematis are native to both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres including Europe, the Himalayas, China, Australasia, North America and Central America.

Cultivated plants are often divided into three groups based on pruning needs.

Group 1 – Flowers only on old wood (previous year). Prune after spring flowering.
Group 2 – Flowers on both old and new wood. Typically, little pruning should be done for woody-stemmed members of this Group. If cut to the ground or pruned in fall or spring, flowering will be reduced or delayed but not prevented.
Group 3 – Flowers only on new wood. Can be cut to the ground in fall or spring.

Genus name comes from the Greek word klematis which is an old name applied to climbing plants.

'The President' is an early large-flowered cultivar that typically grows to 8-10' tall. Single, purple-blue flowers (to 7" diameter) with red anthers bloom early to mid season on old growth followed by additional late summer bloom on new growth. Dark green leaves. Showy seed heads develop in fall. RHS Award of Garden Merit 1993.

Clematis 'The President' - Plant Finder (missouribotanicalgarden.org)

 

 

 

https://youtu.be/L4Rx2-7Btes?t=126