Digging deeperPlant Library

Chelsea Clematis flowers

(Photo courtesy of NetPS Plant Finder)

Group/Class:  Raymond Evison Group

Description:

A super compact variety that blooms over a long period; elegant white semi blooms with cream centers; great for small spaces, containers, and hanging baskets

Ornamental Features

Chelsea Clematis features showy white star-shaped flowers with creamy white eyes at the ends of the stems from late spring to early fall. Its compound leaves remain green in color throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Chelsea Clematis is a multi-stemmed perennial vine with a twining and trailing habit of growth. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant. It is a Type 3 clematis; each spring it should be pruned back to within a few inches of the ground, as it flowers on new wood of the season. It is a good choice for attracting hummingbirds to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Chelsea Clematis is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting
• Hanging Baskets

Planting & Growing

Chelsea Clematis will grow to be about 3 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 12 inches. As a climbing vine, it should either be planted near a fence, trellis or other landscape structure where it can be trained to grow upwards on it, or allowed to trail off a retaining wall or slope. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 20 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in both summer and winter to conserve soil moisture and protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.

Chelsea Clematis is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor containers and hanging baskets. Because of its spreading habit of growth, it is ideally suited for use as a 'spiller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the edges where it can spill gracefully over the pot. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.