PlantFiles: Sweet Autumn Clematis, Sweet Autumn Virgin's Bower, Japanese Clematis
Clematis terniflora

Never, ever grow clematis terniflora. It is listed as a introduced non-native invasive in every invasive list found. It is a Japanese plant, imported here. There is a tremendous difference between clematis terniflora and our native clematis virginiana. The best explanation/description I've read is at:

http://deepmiddle.blogspot.com/2008/05/tale-of-two-clematis-...

This is a short, but very clear description with pictures of the difference between the two. Please read it. The main way to differentiate between the two is that our native virginiana has trifoliate leaves with toothed margins. The invasive terniflora has rounded and untoothed leaves.

Believe it or not this clematis bloomed here in zone 12 (Puerto Rico) .... I was very impressed when I saw it. I was not expecting this plant to bloom here in full sun. The flowers are beautiful. I am going to upload a photo.

August in the Augusta, GA is usually at the end of the summer annual's show of bloom but much too early for fall blooming annuals. Sweet Autumn is always a delightful surprise as it often goes unnoticed until it blooms.

In a nearby yard, a fall-blooming clematis has spread everywhere...half-way up large blue spruces, into apple trees, covering forsythia bushes, etc. About 400' away, I've spotted several different vines growing on the edge of dense woods, climbing about 20' up the trees. About 1000' in a different direction, I've spotted at least one more, also growing in the woods. These all appear to have their origins from the first property, so I'd consider this plant to be extremely invasive.

I have never myself grown this plant, but I lived for two years in Ocean Grove, NJ, where it was everywhere. Everyone who grew it loved it. It was usually seen growing over bowers, fences, and archways. Perhaps it was easy to control because there are few open areas in "The Grove", and also because so many people who live there are avid gardeners. I want one for my current property, and am willing to do the work it will take in order to have their awesomely scented flowers every year.

This just showed up one year at out house on the east side of Detroit. Was not planted by me, the lady that lived in the house, the guy that bought it to fix up, or the next owner. Absolutely LOVED it right from the start. Took me about 10 years to find out what it is. It has, to my knowledge, never migrated. In fact, I'm on this sight to find out how to transfer it to my house in Royal Oak. I haven't been able to get it to grow from seed or from cuttings.

I too joined this forum for the sole purpose of discouraging propagation of this extremely invasive nuisance. I never planted it, but this vine pops up everywhere, invading not only my property but a park and entire valley, impossible to eradicate. Sales of it should be banned. DO NOT PLANT!

Gorgeous, but spreads a bit freely. Blooms September - October in my garden.

My first attempt with Sweet Autumn Clematis was quite successful. The plant came back stronger every year for 4 yrs. then died. I replanted and it only lasted 2 years. I garden in Zone 5 so It should have survived. I have approx. 20 different Clematis on my property so I know its not me! I'm not sure I'll try a third time.

I've had this plant in three locations for years and it has not been invasive. It migrated once, but I gave one of the babies to my daughter and moved the other one to another trellis on my garage wall. It was originally on the neighbor's chainlink fence, but I could never get enough roots dug up to transplant it from there, so I bought one at Loew's and put it next to my mailbox. After I got a new mailbox, I put up a trellis behind it and moved the plant over. The original one covered my old ugly mailbox, which was nice, but I worried about the mailman getting stung by the bees. Now I train the plant to stay behind the box as much as possible. I brought a start up to my lake house and it grows on a trellis near my deck and hasn't moved at all.
I also have milkweed vine which grows on the same trellis and the white blossoms look nice together, although the milkweed vine is definitely invasive and I pull it out all over my yard and almost every flower bed all summer.
Last spring my son was able to get a good start from the original spot, which is now growing on the new neighbor's privacy fence. Some of it sneaks through to my side.
I have had many compliments about my Sweet Autumn and people have stopped at my curb to ask what it is. I was surprised to see it is invasive in other states. I love it because it blooms in Aug-Sept when most other flowers are fading or gone.

The plant has been in the ground for 4 years. It has bloomed once, 2 or 3 blossoms, which were fragrant. At this moment, the middle of August there is no hint of blossoming. It has not been invasive, although it grows quite well. Nice leaves.

I planted Sweet Autumn Clematis in each corner flower bed I have in the back yard. I made cylinder "cages" out of what we call hog wire and staked them on 6' T posts about 2' above the ground to allow me to weed underneath. I have 4 cages about 3' in dia. for each plant to cover. I've cut it down to just 1.5 foot stalks and by mid to late summer they have covered all the cages. The blooms are beautiful and make a good show when almost all the other flowers in my beds have exausted their blooms. The clematis will reach out to my other flowers planted near by so I just keep cutting off the vines that are trying to attach to my other plants and cover them. Cutting and removing the old vines in early spring is a pretty lengthy job but ripping & cutting it off & out of my cages doesn't hurt it from coming back. It's amazing how quickly and how much these plants grow in such a short time.

Think long term - after the planter of this aggressive weed is gone, who will do the "regular pruning and weeding' suggested in this article?

This sprouted in my yard about five years back, having drifted in from a neighbor's yard. (Which is more than fair since my Common Milkweed is trying to take over the neighborhood.) I have two vines that come back every year. On the north side of my house, it grows happily on a fence that receives early morning and late afternoon sun but gets a bit of a break at the hottest parts of the day. This vine gets pruned back to near ground level every spring when I'm cutting down Asian bittersweet. (The first time was an accident, but it worked so well I've done it ever since.) In summer, the combination with Morning Glories and various milkweed is stunning, and my butterflies love it!

On the west, I have a vigorous sprout I've been trying to eradicate since I first saw it, because it's in the middle of my lawn and has nothing to climb on. It gets mowed, it got hit with Roundup, I've even tried digging it up - it keeps growing back. It may get a tower to climb this year.

This vine refuses to grow in my south-facing backyard.

Because of its beautiful fragrance, we allowed this volunteer to grow for 3-4 years, and now it is a completely invasive parasite. Would anyone have any advice about organic/biological/biodynamic ways of getting it to subside? Many thanks.

I ordered a sweet autumn clematis about 15 years ago and planted it along our stockade fence -- it covered the whole fence and was absolutely gorgeous. I did not find it invasive at all here in Connecticut, as a matter of fact the whole vine seemed to grow from only a very few stems and a few years later when we fenced in the back yard for our dogs, they managed to kill it by breaking the few vines that it grew from. I tried once more to grow it there but it just couldn't take with all the activity in the yard -- I wish it were more invasive here because I would grow it all over the place and on every fence we have. So I just bought another one and am getting ready to put it in the front yard, where it won't be disturbed and we'll see what happens.

Out of no where, Sweet Autumn Clematis volunteered to grow along the walls of our outdoor shower in South Kingstown, RI. By mid summer, the vines grow over the top and down the inside making for extremely beautiful, fragrant showers which last well into the fall! Quite the conversation piece! This will be our fifth summer enjoying Autumn Clematis and it has not become invasive at all. We've actually planted cuttings along the deck lattice. Great little vine!

I always look forward to when mine blooms(Aug.-Oct.).
It smells wonderful. The scent reminds me of the old-time sweetheart soap. And the little white cotton colored flowers always put on a pretty display.

This is highly invasive. My entire neighborhood is covered in this vine. In some places it is choking out the honeysuckle and English ivy. It spreads easily and has a long tap root that will re-leaf if not dug up entirely. I joined this forum just to say Do Not Plant This or your neighbors may come after you.

I planted one the year before last and last fall it really had done well but this year I had to replace it. It apparently froze out....So disappointed...Hope it doesn't do it this winter.

This vine was here when I bought my house. Oh yes it was beautifull when it bloomed and it smelled great. But then the second year I found out how invasive it was. It was taking over the trees and my yard. I find it popping up everywhere. I have pulled and pulled it every year to get it out of the trees next to my yard. It reaches out and grabs the bushes I have planted along the edge of the yard. I hate this plant.

Fastest growing, quckest blooming, and least damaging vine compared to wisteria and trumpet vine. If you have a fence to hide, this is by far the best choice.

I love this vine. I first saw it blooming in Colonial Beach,VA. I was so taken by the fragrance I bought some for my yard. It lasted one season and died off. I did not disturb the area where it had been planted and maybe two growing seasons later I noticed a vine curling up my fence. I didn't think it was possible that it was the Sweet Autumn Clematis. Now , some years later, it is covering the fence and easily 20' feet up into my Sycamore tree. It blooms profusely and perfumes that entire corner of the yard. I am thrilled, to say the least. It is vigorous but not invasive.

I see this lovely plant every where but I can not get it to blossom in our yard. It gets some dappled sun almost all day. So I have not had the problem of it being invasive. I pruned it in the spring of '08 and it came back quit quickly. Still no flowers for me. Which is why I got it. I paid only 75 cents for the plant. Well worth the money.

I have this plant at a low platform on my deck steps. I yanked it out (or so I thought) several years back. Then, last year, there it was in its prime blooming like crazy. It blooms amongst a pink baby rose bud bush. It looks very pretty. I have lots of beetles on it every August, but it doesn't seem to bother this vine. This spring, It was destroyed by repairing our deck. I kind of think it "will be back". I enjoy this vine, and it has a very limited area it can grow.

Yes, Autumn Clematis can be/is invasive here in Montgomery, Al., but the fall showing is still worth it.

A number of years ago, I was doing the flowers for my son's wedding and wanted to use wild smilax. However, it was too early in the season (May) and the new growth smilax would not have held up as indoor decorations. Tried the Autumn Clematis and it worked great. Removed the tender new growth but the older, evergreen foliage held up great. Used it on trellises and foam core to create a room divider, pinned it to table skirts, etc. Guests were really impressed. Looked great in the photos, too.

Did hose the vines off after cutting to remove any unwanted bugs, etc.

Try it! You'll like it!

Although beautiful, lush, fragrant covering our "Lovers Kiosk" it is the MOST INVASIVE PLANT I HAVE EVER SEEN. It cmes up every where, in the shrubs, in the flower beds, and in the lawn. It would be a savings to just let it take over and mow - eliminating weed control and fertilizer.

Zone 6b Bloomington, IN. I bought this plant by mistake. I was trying to buy the native plant, C. virginiana, which is also called sweet autumn clematis. The plant was sold as C. paniculata not terniflora, a Japan native. The growth habit, and fragrance is similar to the C. virginiana. After buying the terniflora, I was given a slip of the virginiana from a friend (a hitchhiker with some asters that she gave me). The foliage of the terniflora is darker and more lush than that of the native. Both new transplants weathered our drought and placement in the horrible backfill clay around the house foundation, next to a new concrete drive, a hot rock wall, and still bloomed. I'm counting of them to screen many trash cans, my wheel barrow, and ugly utility area.

I have this plant it is awesome I have a lot of people who love the smell and want to grow one, the only problem is mine does not have shoots ,so I cannot give any starts to those who want it.

I find this plant growing in protected wetlands in Maryland, roadsides, hedgerows, fences... Yet another non-native invasive, causing ecological damage to our countryside, for some "fragrance". Kudzu is fragrant, too.

It spreads by seeds, and the wind blows the seeds far and wide, so unless you deadhead every flower, "containing" this plant is a fantasy.

Summer of 2007 noticed this growing all around Orange, TX

Lovely vine bearing dainty white lightly fragrant blossoms. I find this to be a hearty vigorous grower and fortunately so far it has stayed in place on the arbor with no tendency to be invasive after several years. Something nice to look forward to and enjoy at the end of summer.

I have this growing on an old clothes line pole and it has always done great for me. I hardly ever water it and it still thrives. I have never seen any volunteers from this plant. It grows where I have it and that is it. Not invasive here at all.

This vine was growing on the chainlink fence when we moved in our home 18 years ago. At first I was impressed with the lovely fragrant flowers. That was before I discovered how invasive it was, so I didn't know not to let it set seed. I'm still trying to eliminate it from smoothering my desireable shrubs. It's a constant battle because it even comes up in the middle of the lawn. Cutting it back just seems to make it grown back stronger. You have to dig up the roots.

The previous owners had left so many invasive species growing in this yard; japanese honeysuckle, wild grapes, trumpet vine, star of bethlehem, and burmuda grass to name a few; they must have went for any plant that was "easy to grow and/or naturalizes".

I have this vine here in Orlando, Fl, and it was very pretty last summer. Some kind of bug did eat on it but not sure what kind it was. The blooms lasted about 1 month I guess. It died back and now is green again. I dont plan to cut it down.

this is a pretty vine with tons of white flowers in late summer. i found this in my yard and it is popping up everywhere.

I had no clue what this was until just recently, when I stumbled across it on DG.
It does bloom profusely, and if you're not careful, it'll take over everything.
Early this spring, I had decided I did not want the vine anymore, so I pulled it all up -- or so I thought. LOL! It's now just as huge as it was this time last year. Maybe next spring I'll transplant it to the fence in the back and let it take over!

I bought my house in early May last year and the previous owner told me to put up a trellis in this one spot because some everlasting peas were about to shoot out of the ground. I went ahead and did that, and something shot out of the ground and covered the trellis and I was very impressed. Now this year I am a little bit more aware of what is growing, and I realize that some wind-blown Clematis seed from across the street stole the show. There are just a couple little pea flowers and stems poking out of the Clematis.

The Clematis is spread thoroughly throughout my yard, covering nearby fences and trees. It grows more than 3 inches a day and has completely strangled most of the nearby evergreens, kudzu style. It is even waging a successful war on my undisturbed grass lawn.

I'm very impressed with this plant and wish only that all of my garden plants were this aggressive. As it is, I'm dreaming of the day that Clematis beatles find my yard. I'll pay shipping if anyone wants to share!

A beautiful clematis I absolutely love to grow!

It perches atop our chain link fence in the front yard,
adding beauty to an otherwise ugly necessity.

This clematis can become invasive when it is allowed to.
It doesn't grow like Kudzu overnight, it is permitted to get
out of control. Not a plant for lazy gardeners.

One drawback, at least in our area, are those dreaded
nasty clematis beetles.

Epicauta pennsylvanica, I shudder with fear!

Shiny, hard coated black beetles that can destroy every
bud and bloom on the plant in a short period of time.

When you see one beetle, you should act right then, not
wait a few days thinking you will take care of them
'this weekend'. You won't have any blooms left.

Good growth in its first year and I am expecting even more from it next year. I have it growing around my front porch area where I'm hoping it will cover the front of the house each year! The fragrance around the front door is amazing while it is in bloom and the little white flowers are very pretty

It is a Group III Clematis which should be severely cut back every late winter / early spring as it blooms on new wood. Seed pods in the fall are PROLIFIC and I can understand why in some places it might be considered invasive. Definitely needs room to roam! Makes a nice groundcover

Keep roots shaded with mulch or another plant. Likes to be fed with a balanced fertilizer

in the pacific northwest, this plant can be seen growing up into the evergreens and evokes the feel of spanish moss when the numerous seed heads turn gray in the fall.........i wouldn't want to battle it in my yard but it looks beautiful from afar...............even saw two ladies who cut down 20ft sprays in bloom to decorate a wedding arbor....perfect!!!

Very quick to establish (two years from a garden store twig to something over 8 ft tall and appropriately wide). The flowers are very pretty, and come at a good time, but I didn't notice any of the much lauded scent.

This plant is taking over an undistubed nature area near our house. Very interesting how all the native clematis that I grow in my yard are enjoyed by cats and bugs, yet this plant is never touched by anything: from my perspective a beautiful but worse than useless plant.

I have had this vine trailing over the wooden fence in my alley for three years. When in bloom, it is so beautiful that my neighbors will stop their cars in the alley and get out to take a closer look. It dies back during freezes and I cut off the dead parts in late winter to control its size. I have not had problems with it being invasive, but I keep it trained to a trellis that is nailed to the fence. Excellent vine. With a little training and a good haircut in winter, it's a keeper.

A beautiful, vigerous, climbing plant. I was going to prune it this fall until I read that one person lets the winter birds nest in it. Great idea. I'm thinking that I can prune it in the spring and still have a great showing of flowers in the fall. I don't notice any seedlings or taking over of my yard in this zone 5 garden. CHAR

Here in the Thumb of Michigan, just a few miles inland from Lake Huron it thrives.
The birds love it, they nest in it all winter, eating the seeds through the cold weather months. We enjoy watching them going in at night and out in the morning. Covers an old wooden privacy fence. Smells wonderful too.
It is very, VERY Hearty!

This is such a beauty to have in the garden. Many, many many tiny 4pointed white flowers. The fragrance is just beautiful. I have mine trained on a fence, a gate, a nearby forsithia (?) bush and a tree. There are so many blooms the entire area is snow white!!

Uh, this weekend I was at my father's house and saw a patch of this. At first my thought was - how neat a Clematis growing in the woods. Then I starting looking around - it is on 3 sides of his yard and literally taking over like kudzu - zone 7a. I could not believe it - he did not even notice it was there but it is most invasive in my zone.

In zone 6 it is a vigorous grower. I'm trying to find out it it is toxic to horses. My parents have a plant and I want to grow it on our fence but don't want to poison the horses. Does anyone know if it's toxic?

I do have to keep an eye on it, but it is well worth the effort for the profusion of flowers in the fall when there is less of interest in the garden. Have it growing on an old ladder, which it completely covered in about six months.

This unique vine has added alot to my garden from my neighbors yard. She has planted 2 on the fence and it completely climbs throughout the whole fence. Beautiful light green leaves, and absolutely gorgeous white blooms in late summer-fall. I liked it so much I got one of my on to grow on the fence. Is an excellent climber, and actually makes for good privacy on a fenceline.

My Clematis terniflora has never been invasive. As soon as the blooms fade, I cut the whole plant back to about 3 feet so it never sets seed. I also do a lot of pruning in the summer to keep it in bounds. The striped blister beetle loves this plant here in Missouri. It can be controlled by Sevin dust, but then that kills the swarms of bees that love the flowers, so I prefer to just cut off the vines and discard them after blooming instead of using poison.

This drastic cutting back never keeps my plant from performing well the next year. The fragrance of the flowers is so lovely and it fills the yard while in bloom.

I live in zone 7, and Clematis terniflora is invasive here. I have to keep it from spreading all over the yard. I have never seen any insect, worm or bird eat any part of it.

I have been fighting its invasion of my yard for years, and I can't get rid of it. It would take over if I didn't thin it out often.

This is a beautiful cover for fence or trellis. The blooms are wonderful and smell great, the seeds blow in the wind and grow where they fall.

This is a great clematis, it is fast growing and needs lots of room, I have it on the east side of my house and it does great with a half day of sun. I love the profuse blooms and fragrance! It doesnt require much care and gives lots in return!

I get many volunteers from this plant. I highly recommend it to any gardener that has the energy to dig up and dispose of the unwanted every spring. It transplants very well if moved in the evening and kept shaded and watered for a few days. It will fully cover a large arbor by the second or third year. I dig them up and pot them and set them beside a large one growing on an arbor near the street and put a free sign on them and they go like hot cakes!

This is a VERY fast growing Clematis, and needs plenty of room to spread out! The fragrance is GREAT, and it's just breathtaking in full bloom. I have several, and I love 'em! The little silvery seed spirals are VERY unique, too!

Strong grower and mostly evergreen for me. Wonderfully scented tiny flowers late summer/early fall, followed by silverly seedpods.

Sweet Autumn Clematis provides profuse white blossoms from late summer to fall.