How do you recognise Jackman's clematis (Clematis x jackmanii)?

Habit

Daniel Dumais · CC BY-SA 4.0

Jackman's clematis

Clematis x jackmanii T.Moore & Jackman

Also known as: Jackmanii clematis

Family: Ranunculaceae

2 to 4 m tall when climbing

Gardens throughout France, planted at the foot of a wall, on a pergola, trellis or to climb through a shrub, with the roots in shade and the head in sun

Flowering: June - September

Full sun

Part shade

Hardy to -20°C

❓ How do you recognise this plant?

It does not cling by tendrils like the grape vine: it is the leaf petioles themselves that coil around the support, like little fingers. Traveller's joy, wild in our countryside, has a multitude of small white star-shaped flowers followed by silvery plumes in autumn, whereas the cultivated hybrid clematis bears large solitary purple flowers with broad petals.

🍃 Leaves

Deciduous, compound with 3 ovate, bright green leaflets, borne on long petioles that coil around a support

🌸 Flowers

Large solitary flowers with 4-6 broad petals (sepals), deep violet to purple, opening flat, very showy

🍎 Fruits

Achenes grouped in small silvery plumed heads after flowering

🪵 Bark

Thin twining stems, woody at the base, climbing without tendrils by coiling their petioles around a support

🗺️ Distribution

Horticultural hybrid raised in England in 1858, now the most widely planted clematis in French gardens

🐝 Value for pollinators

Nectar-bearing flowers visited by bees and bumblebees in summer

✂️ Horticultural uses

The most classic large-flowered clematis of French gardens, planted at the foot of a wall or pergola; the rule 'head in the sun, feet in the shade' is essential for good flowering

⚠️ Possible toxicity

Sap irritant to the skin and mucous membranes (as in other clematis); ingestion not recommended, may cause digestive irritation.

⚠️ Look-alike species

Jackman's clematis

Clematis x jackmanii

Traveller's joy

Clematis vitalba

Traveller's joy, wild in our countryside, has a multitude of small white star-shaped flowers followed by silvery plumes in autumn, whereas the cultivated hybrid clematis bears large solitary purple flowers with broad petals.

🌿 Other Ranunculaceae to discover

Meadow buttercup

Ranunculus acris

Lenten rose

Helleborus orientalis

ℹ️ Educational profile — do not use it to judge whether a plant is edible or safe.

🌱 This database is constantly evolving — species and information are added and corrected regularly. Spotted a mistake? Report it below.