Looking for a vine that can take shade and a spot away from the foundation of the house? Super-tough clematis alpina is it. My blue one, probably 'Blue Bird' and probably at least 15 years old, survives under a spruce tree with no extra care. Now that is my kind of plant! My pink one, 'Willy' is only a year old but I expect great things from it.
These kinds of clematis do not need to be cut down at all and their fuzzy seed heads look cool too, so they add vertical dimension to the garden all year long. I highly recommend them.
That's one of my garden favourites too - it's fun watching your garden come to life. I think you're around 3 or 4 weeks behind the South of England, which is interesting, given the famously short growing season in Calgary.
Posted by: Rachael | June 13, 2011 at 08:23 AM
Really? 3 or 4 weeks? Thats it? I think its more - at least at the beginning of spring when things are getting going - but thats very sweet of you to say!
I have to say, one advantage of the short growing season is that we dont have a period of burnout at the end of summer, when summer-blooming plants are finished and fall-blooming plants havent started putting on their show yet. We get everything almost all at once!
Janice
Posted by: Janice Miller-Young | June 13, 2011 at 10:13 AM
Yes, looking in terms of what's blooming with you - a month ago our tulips were just ending, and our irises were just on the way. I think when you get growing, you get growing much faster - am really interested to see how fast your soil warms up, given how cold it is in the winter.
Posted by: Rachael | June 13, 2011 at 03:29 PM
I've been admiring my neighbor's purple clematis like this for the past few days - I am for sure going to get one for my yard - especially now that I know they will tolerate shade. They are so pretty!
Posted by: Megan | June 13, 2011 at 03:34 PM
Ask for a new shoot from the ground - they propagate very easily.
Posted by: plantman | June 13, 2011 at 07:39 PM
@R - I guess you're right. It just FEELS like so much longer because at that time of year I'm so desperate for spring! We do get lots of sun and hot sun, but because of our elevation our nights are pretty cool. This is supposed to be good for sweetening fruit and for saturated flower colours, but it means our plants don't get as big as they would elsewhere.
@M - I'll go out today and check if there's a shoot that can be easily separated from the main plant. It's worth a shot!
Janice
Posted by: Calgary Garden Coach | June 14, 2011 at 05:04 AM
Thanks Janice! :)
Posted by: Megan | June 14, 2011 at 11:57 AM
I've seen a blue one like this in the back lane growing on some chain link fences and wondered what it was. Very nice!
Posted by: The Ms. S. | June 14, 2011 at 09:49 PM
Is this the type that grows wild in the woods by Elbow Falls? We have a yellow one in the front hedge, but i'd love to complement it with this beautiful blue!
Posted by: arlee | June 18, 2011 at 07:41 AM
Arlee - probably! The yellow and blue won't bloom at the same time, but having both would definitely extend the overall blooming period.
Janice
Posted by: Calgary Garden Coach | June 20, 2011 at 07:07 AM