PlantFiles: Devil's Darning Needles, Virgin's Bower
Clematis virginiana

I think this plant can be confused with Sweet Autumn Clematis. (terniflora?) They are very similar. One is more invasive than the other. I have seen one of them growing wild in NE GA. It has two-tone varieg. green leaves. Does anyone have a positive ID on this? Thanx, Brenda

We've had this plant growing in wood containers on our Manhattan terrace for more than 3 years, and every late summer it gives great pleasure to us and all our neighboring condo dwellers: beautiful clouds of white flowers all along our railings. Of course dies back every winter but comes back strong each spring. Granted, there's no danger of it escaping the containers and eating Manhattan, but it's a great note of nature in the city.

Clematis virginiana is no more toxic than any other Clematis. This plant is native to most of the US and Canada east of the Rocky Mountains.

Toxic. Reportedly irritating to skin and mucous membranes. Ingestion may cause bloody vomiting severe diarrhea and convulsions.

Put it someplace where you won't have to fight it. I have it out back fighting with the virginia creeper on an old woodpile. It is great there. I had to use extreme measures to remove it from near my garage because it was popping up where it was not wanted. Now we are living in peace :).

Wow! Hard to believe that the votes for this plant are currently on the negative side! I have it as a native plant in my yard and I love it. I can see how some would find it offensive in its habit of spreading easily and climbing as tall as it can reach into trees and shrubs, but the expansive "impressionistic" display of creamy white flowers in Autumn and the heavenly aroma (similar to honeysuckle, but more fragrant) outweigh any negative aspects for me.

C. virginiana seems to be somewhat in demand and apparently difficult to come by. I've had at least two gardeners from DG tell me they had searched far and wide to locate some for sale and became mostly frustrated in their attempts.

I have plenty. It transplants easily for me. Maybe I should go into the C. virginiana farming business?? But I'm currently listing it in my trade list for Trade (and may let some of it go for SASE if you will share loving words about the plant).

Mulch well with composts in late winter
Aggressive when healthy, but sometimes difficult to establish. The best road to success is a cool, shaded root zone.

Prune: according to group (see general notes, above)
Bark: Exfoliating in strips, gray-brown
Root: Fleshy
Fragrance: Some spp are strongly fragrant
Fruit: Achenes, often with feathery styles
Flower:
Solitary or in panicles
Campanulate (bell-shaped) or flat.
Perfect or unisexual. Carpels numerous.
Sepals 4, in 4’s or occaisionally 5’s, petal-like, petals absent, stamens numerous, some spp. with petal-like stamens.

Foliage:
Simple or pinnately or bipinnately compound

Soil, Water:
Moist but well drained, fertile, humous rich, many prefer sweet soils.
Keep root zone cool, shaded, and mulched with composts or leaves.

Pathology:
Powdery Mildew
Fungal Spot
Rust
Wilts
Stem canker
Root rot nematodes (particularly problematic)

Entomology:
Aphids
Scale
Earwigs
Whiteflies

Plant distribution in Australia: Introduced “Noxious weed” aggressively eradicated

Sources:
The American Horticultural Society A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, page 274-279
Hortus Third, page 281-285
The Plants of Pennsylvania, page 572-574
Dictionary of Plant Names, Allen J. Coombes, page 43-44

This plant has beautiful tiny white flowers which bloom and cascade over in the fall, thence it's name. The downside is hundreds of plants it generates all over your lawn. They are impossible to pull up, and very difficult to kill, even with Roundup.

This wonderful plant showed up in my yard as a volunteer. It was easily transplanted to a full sun area. I had no knowledge of the plant, but started it on a trellis and the results are spectacular. Profuse flowers and heavenly scent. Thank you Mother Nature for this "gift". I would have paid $ for it.