June Clematis of the Month:
C. Etoile Violette
Seattle’s unusually long warm spring propelled all my clematis, as well as most of my other garden plants, into bloom a full month early this year–starting in March and continuing through April and May. And then June was no different! The usual stars in my June garden are early large-flowered clematis like C. Will Baron, C. Fair Rosamond, and C. Guernsey Cream. But this year they had all put on their show in May and were devoid of blooms in June.
Fortunately, though, there was no dearth of clematis in my June garden–the July bloomers came to the rescue! An excellent case in point is Clematis of the Month for June, C. Etoile Violette. This 10-year-old plant, which gracefully drapes itself over and through a dying Italian plum tree in the middle of my garden, had more blooms this year than ever before. I guesstimated over 1,000 blooms all at one time in mid-June. Check out the photos below, taken on June 13, of C. Etoile Violette from all sides.
C. Etiole Violette, South Side
C. Etoile Violette, West Side
C. Etoile Violette, East Side
C. Etoile Violette, North Side
Clematis in Seattle 