THE VITICELLAS
This group have been especially designed to suit the new comer to growing clematis. They normally grow very well with a modicum of assistance and are virtually pest and disease free.
The original specie comes from Southern Europe and is a variable purple in colour ,the flowers are wide hanging bells produced in profusion this character has been retained by all the hybrids. All grow to about 4 metres and can be hard pruned over the winter as is normally recommended . You may if you wish leave the stems longer especially if grown into a shrub. Try cutting the stems to different lengths which will increase the flowering height. None are fussy about aspect and flower about July or August for many weeks.
NAME AND DESCRIPTION
VITICELLA purple bells about 5 cm across.
V HAGELBY WHITE A white form of the species collected and named after the village where Carl Linne had his summer house.
V ABUNDANCE pink red flowers with cream stamens.
V ALBA LUXURIANS creamy white with contrasting dark stamens often has green patches on early flowers especially in cool summers.
V BETTY CORNING viticella crossed with crispa delicate pale lilac open bells with delicate scent.
V BLUE BELLE deep velvet blue rounded flowers.
V CARMENCITA clean carmine red.
V CAERULLEA LUXURIANS a seedling of Alba Luxurians which misses out on most of the green but has white with a blue rinse colour, deepening in cold weather.
V EETIKA Very floriforous cultivar in shades of red tinged with purple.
V ELVAN slightly larger than the type and a more open appearance tepals often slightly twisted.
V ETOILE VIOLETTE deep purple cream centre.
V FOXTROT Same pale centre as the others in the series, this time with lilac edges.
V KERMISINA clear mid red rounded flower lots of colour, brilliant with Perl d'Azur
V LITTLE NELL cream tepals with light purple edge.
V MADAME JULIA CORREVON deep burgundy red the flower appears to be heavier than most of the type and opens wide.
V MARGOT KOSTER twisted rose pink tepals.
V MARY ROSE spiky double in purple tinged with red. It is very difficult to propagate and is always in short supply.
V MINUET mauve margin to tepals fading to cream centre although the veins remain coloured.
V MRS.LUNDELL light rosy red one of the better introductions.
V POLISH SPIRIT deep violet blue. Very vigorous.
V PURPUREA PLENA ELEGANS small purple pom pon flowers totally unlike any other clematis flower.
V ROYAL VELOURS I have always managed to miss this plant from the catalogue which is a pity as it is possibly the best of the bunch and certainly one that I grow in my own garden. Deep purple with a tinge of red, just like velvet when opening virtually black when new turning to a nice red purple.
V SODERTALJE Tall growing as well as free flowering. Pinkish red.
V TANGO pinky red margins fading to creamy centre.
V VENOSA VIOLACAE white centre with purple edges flower larger than most of the type.
PRINCE CHARLES of unknown lineage, possibly viticella modesta rediscovered it has all the same characteristics small flowers pale blue with hint of mauve colour improves with increased doses of sunlight.
This article was originally published on the web at oviatt-ham.demon.co.uk (Malcolm Oviatt-Ham, Cambridge), however that website is defunct at 2014. The copyright is with Malcolm Oviatt-Ham.