Scientific Name: Clematis vitalba
Common Name: traveller's joy
Family Name: Ranunculaceae
Origin: Europe
Hardiness Zone: Zone 5: (-29 to -23 °C)
Plant Type: Invasive plant, Vine - deciduous, Vine - deciduous, Vine or climber
Mature Size: 15 - 22m x 10 - 15m (height x width)
Habit: Spreading
Form: Climbing
Texture: Medium - fine
Landscape Uses: Fall interest
Exposure: Full sun, Part sun/part shade
Soil or Media: Well-drained
Leaves: Compound, Opposite, Soft flexible, Glabrous, Odd-pinnate, Ovate, Entire
Flowers: Cyme, White, Green, Jun-Sep
Fruit: Aggregate fruit, Achene, Brown, Aug-Sep-Oct
Key ID Features:
Stems up to 4m in length, becoming very woody; leaves opposite, compound with 5(-7) lance-shaped, leaflets, 5-8cm long x 3-5cm wide, entire to coarsely toothed or lobed, +/- petiole tendrils; flowers lemon-yellow, nodding, with 4(-6) hairy petal-like sepals (bell-shaped at first and then split as the petals spread), about 50 stamens and 20 pistils; achenes oval to 5mm long with attractive duck down-like tails 2-3.5cm long. Winter ID: twigs ridged along length and across nodes; petioles remain; buds opposite, ovoid, scales pointy.