Clematis in Seattle

Lovely little 100-year-old Nippon clematis vase found on Ebay.

No one will be surprised to learn that no clematis bloomed in my garden in December. None, nada, nichts.  In fact, only a very few had any green leaves. Undaunted, I routed around on Ebay to find my December Clematis of the month — the beautiful lavender clematis on the lovely little Nippon vase on the left!

Unfortunately, I don’t know what clematis is meant to be represented.  If it is based on a real clematis, it would have to be one that was available in Japan in the early 1900s.  It was probably painted from the imagination of the artist, since the center is not quite right for clematis.

The 2012 journal of the International Clematis Society, Clematis International 2012, had a interesting article by Ken Woolfenden about all the wonderful clematis memorabilia he and his wife Fiona have collected.  Over the years, I too have collected several pieces, mostly small plates with hand-painted clematis on them — see photos below.

Garden Clematis

Can you tell I’m suffering from clematis deprivation?  Sigh.  In a few brief forays out into the garden over the past few days, I’ve seen very small vegetative buds on some of my spring blooming clematis.  I had to look really close to see them, but they are definitely there!  No buds on my winter bloomers, though (C. napaulensis and C. cirrhosa).

Brushwood Nursery is having a 15% off sale this week, so I caved and ordered three more clematis (which I need like a hole in the head).  I must not buy any more clematis.  I must not buy any more clematis.  I must not buy any more clematis.  Hmmm, maybe I should plant up some of the clematis seeds I have in a jar in the fridge.

A Few Clematis Plates