Clematis Will Baron — May Clematis of the Month
Clematis Fair Rosamond — A Contender
Clematis Josephine — the Other Contender
The Contenders
Deciding which clematis in my garden was the best for the month of May was not an easy task. The contenders duking it out with Clematis Will Baron were the lovely and fragrant Clematis Fair Rosamond and the exotic Clematis Josephine. All three bloomed beautifully with showy large blossoms.
But the color of the blooms on Will Baron was a startling electric blue-violet, which is so difficult to capture in photos. Oddly, I was able to get closer to the true color when I took a photo from the back of the blooms. Photos taken from the front always show too much purple and not enough blue. To see what I mean, check out the two photos of Clematis Will Baron below. I will be taking a photography class at the Hardy Plant Society Conference in Bellevue, WA, in a few weeks. Hopefully, I learn how to bring out the true colors of garden plants.
In the meantime, I will be attending the International Clematis Conference in the Philadelphia next week. I am so PSYCHED! Expect a full report.
C. Will Baron, a little too purply
C. Will Baron from the back — now THAT’S more like it!
Other Clematis Showing Off in the Garden
Take a look at some of the other clematis beginning to bloom in my garden. Who knows, maybe one of these will get the June title! Not too long ago, I counted up my clematis by pruning group and discovered that 80% of my clematis were in pruning group 3. Well, now, there is a very good reason for that. Most of the pruning-group-3 clematis are so floriferous AND easy to prune. But over the past couple of years, I have made concerted effort to bring in more clematis from the other two pruning groups. What a joy to have so many more clematis blooming from March through June. I love it! But the late bloomers are still my favorites. Which are your favorites?
Clematis Cezanne
Clematis Rebecca
Clematis Climador
Clematis Duchess of Edinburgh
Wow! The VERY Early First Blossoms of Etoile Violette
Clematis Omoshiro
Clematis Tartu Beginning to Open It’s First Blossom
Durn, C. Tartu wilted the very next day!
Clematis The First Lady
Clematis Versailles
Clematis Vyvyan Pennell
Clematis Fugimusume
The Early First Flower of Clematis Ville de Lyon
Clematis in Seattle 
Katie said,
May 27, 2014 at 7:29 pm
Wow! Clematis Versailles looks like a winner!
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clematisinseattle said,
May 27, 2014 at 9:33 pm
You’re right, Katie, C. Versailles is a real beauty. It’s a smaller plant, too–just 4-6′. Great for a pot or large windowbox.
Laura
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Kathy Dunn said,
May 29, 2014 at 11:55 pm
Beautiful pictures! I wish I could get my Josephine to look like yours, I had one measly flower and the buds and leaves mostly shriveled. Too much sun? I am afraid my experience with it has put me off trying type 2 clematis.
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clematisinseattle said,
May 30, 2014 at 11:37 am
Hi. Katle,
Thank you! About your Josephine…is it fairly new? Clematis usually take three years to mature and put on a good show. Your shriveled leaves may be from being grown in too much sun, or they may have resulted from the two early heat waves we’ve had in the Pacific Northwest in the last month or two. In general, pastel – colored clematis blossoms keep their color better in part shade.
Laura
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