What's in Bloom?
There are always clematis blooming in the garden! See below for a complete list of this week's blooms, plus a map to help you find each theme garden and bed number.
Updated March 6, 2025: The race is on! Which early bell clematis from the Atragenes Section of the genus will be the first clematis in the garden to start blooming in 2025. These are hybrids and selections of species such as C. alpina, C. koreana, and C. macropetala, to name the most commonly known species in the sections. Many of the Winter Bloomers in the Cirrhosa Group are still in bloom, but winding down as the days lengthen (exactly the opposite of how most other clematis respond to day length changing). Expect regular postings here to resume in early April.
For those of you on Facebook, look for us at Rogerson Clematis Garden. We’re on Instagram at @rogersonclematis as well as Rogerson Clematis Garden.
Visit CLEMATIS SALES: opening dates for ONSITE and ONLINE ordering!.
Visit CLEMATIS CARE for information sheets on growing clematis. If your questions are not answered there, call or text FRCC at 971-777-4394. Also, for a more detailed response, or to send photos for clematis identification, please email info@rogersonclematiscollection.org
At the north end of Bed 23, Clematis alpina ‘Stolwijk Gold’ is getting ready to bloom, March 5, 2025.
Clematis ‘Dark Dancer’ may be the first clematis to flower in 2025 along our new Entry Border.
Buds on C. ‘Pauline’ are starting to emerge with their first hint of color. Bed 24. Will this clematis be first in bloom?
Clematis cirrhosa ‘Wisley Cream’ is still at it for now, March 6, 2025.
OTHER PLANTS
Ribes laurifolium perfumes the air in Bed 17. This is a terrific groundcover shrub.
Our sweep of Crocus tommasinianus ‘Ruby Giant’ is filling in. Bed 15 north end.
The Modern Garden
At the end of each row along the center aisle is a modern non-climbing hybrid or very short-growing vining cultivar.
ROW 1, Profuse summer bloomers related to C. viticella and some summer urn/trumpet hybrids related to C. texensis
Nothing in bloom
ROW 2, Profuse summer bloomers and Pink large-flowered cultivars
Nothing in bloom
RAYMOND EVISON HYBRIDS (Rows 3-7)
ROW 3, Evison Hybrids
Nothing in bloom
ROW 4, Evison Hybrids
Nothing in bloom
ROW 5, Evison Hybrids
Nothing in bloom
ROW 6, Evison Hybrids
Nothing in bloom
ROW 7, Evison Hybrids
Nothing in bloom
ROW 8, Double large-flowered clematis
Nothing in bloom
ROW 9, Profuse flowering clematis (C. viticella and C. texensis hybrids)
Nothing in bloom
WE WOULD LIKE TO HUMBLY REQUEST THAT, FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, CLEMATIS BREEDERS HOLD A MORATORIUM ON NAMING C. viticella and C. texensis HYBRIDS WITH CULTIVAR NAMES BEGINNING WITH ‘P’. WE CAN’T FIT ANYMORE IN THE ALLOTTED AREA, AND IT’S PLAYING HAVOC WITH THE ALPHABET. Thanks. ;-)
SZCZEPAN MARCZYNSKI HYBRIDS (Rows 10 & 11)
ROW 10, Marczynski Hybrids
Nothing in bloom
ROW 11, Marczynski Hybrids and White large-flowered cultivars
Nothing in bloom
ROW 12, Red large-flowered cultivars
Nothing in bloom
ROW 13, Red large-flowered cultivars and Purple large-flowered cultivars
Nothing in bloom
ROW 14, Lavender/Blue large-flowered cultivars
Nothing in bloom
ROW 15, Lavender/Blue large-flowered cultivars and Striped/Barred large-flowered cultivars
Nothing in bloom
ROW 16, Striped/Barred large-flowered cultivars and Late Adds
Nothing in bloom
Beech Tree's Garden
BED 1
Nothing in bloom
BED 2
Nothing in bloom
BED 3
Nothing in bloom
BED 4
Nothing in bloom
This is one of our largest beds, starting across the paths from Bed 3 and Heirloom Garden Bed 5, continuing along the west boundary fence of The Antipodes beds, and the gravel path towards the chicken coop. Step down to the greenhouse level and walk back toward the farmhouse, which will end the Bed 4 loop.
Coop Border
Along the west side of the chicken coop and run, this bed faces due west, so the clematis planted here are sun-lovers, along with their herbaceous perennial companions.
Nothing in bloom
Entry Border
This new feature of the Rogerson Clematis Garden is a long perennial border opposite the Coop Border. It begins with an anonymously donated metal arc with waving stems of reeds on which large-flowered hybrids will climb, greeting visitors with that which they expect to see. But beyond the arc are the other forms of clematis most people don’t know about. Large flat panel trellises are populated by clematis that get big. They are fronted by clematis that cannot climb, those that are herbaceous perennials, in all of their wonderful colors and flower forms. A series of urns house draping clematis from the Atragene section (this is the section with C. macropetala and C. alpina, among many other species), which start flowering in April and repeat bloom through the summer. We have some woody shrub clematis here, too! Into all of this celebration of the variation within the genus Clematis, we have added an array of herbaceous perennials from groundcovers to tall summer-blooming plants, including lilies and repeated stands of Celtica gigantea (syn. Stipa gigantea, stipa grass). We have carefully selected a few shrubs into which the non-climbing clematis may loll if they choose.
Nothing in bloom
Heirloom Garden
BED 5
Nothing in bloom
BED 6
Nothing in bloom
BED 7
Nothing in bloom
BED 8
Nothing in bloom
BED 9
Nothing in bloom
BED 10
Nothing in bloom
BED 11
Nothing in bloom
BED 12
Nothing in bloom
BED 13
Nothing in bloom
The Front Bank
What is a shale barren? Thousands of years ago, Virginia was underwater. As the inland seas retreated, the layers of compressed silt formed these massive walls of quite fertile crevices, if you have roots that know how to exploit the nutrients. The little mounds of green at the upper right and at the bottom of the shale scree are clever Clematis coactilis.
BED 14
Nothing in bloom
The Baltic Border
BED 15
Nothing in bloom
The Founder’s Garden
BED 16
Nothing in bloom
The Steppe Garden
BED 17
This bed wraps around both sides of the old Gravenstein apple tree and includes the stock plants at the south end of the Test Garden.
Nothing in bloom
Old Poland (the Polish Beds)
BED 18
Nothing in bloom
BED 19
Nothing in bloom
BED 20
Nothing in bloom
The Beginner’s Garden
BED 21
Nothing in bloom
BED 22
Nothing in bloom
The Hedges
BED 23
(Replanted in spring 2024 with Tasmannia lanceolata as the hedging; the Viburnum tinus was removed.)
Nothing in bloom
BED 24
Nothing in bloom
Winter Bloomers
Inside the Sales Terrace, these clematis are growing on 4’ wide by 10’ tall flat panel trellises.
Although this picture was taken of Clematis cirrhosa ‘Wisley Cream’ on December 4, 2024, it looks very much the same on March 6, 2025. We had a mild winter, so it never really stopped!
Clematis cirrhosa var. purpurascens ‘Lansdowne Gem’. This cultivar was selected in New Zealand after years of development of C. cirr. var. purp. ‘Freckles’. Sometimes when the autumn is warm, the early few weeks of bloom will look freckled or splotched. When the nights get cold, the flowers darken. Also, we’ve noticed that the older the specimen, the later it will start to bloom, and the darker the flowers will be. The buds that will be solidly dark are themselves much darker than those producing lighter flowers, and removing pale buds encourages darkening of the flowers.
From North to South trellises: Panel 1 C. cirrhosa var. purpurascens ‘Freckles’; Panel 2 C. cirrhosa ‘Wisley Cream’ (panel shared with C. c. ‘Ourika Valley’ which is not yet in bloom); Panel 3 C. cirrhosa var. purpurascens ‘Lansdowne Gem’; Panel 4 C. cirrhosa ‘Jingle Bells’; Panel 5 'Early Times’, Brewster Rogerson’s seedling (panel shared with C. cirrhosa var. balearica, not yet in bloom); South Fence C. cirrhosa var. cirrhosa, mainly growing on a dead pittosporum
Troughs
Nothing in bloom
Subtropical Shade Porch
Nothing in bloom
The Antipodes
Nothing in bloom
Test Garden
Nothing in bloom
CONTAINER DISPLAY AREA
Nothing in bloom
This area, between the Bob and Carol Gutmann Greenhouse and The Antipodes will be increasingly populated by a display/demonstration area for growing clematis in containers. We imagine a continually changing, slowly evolving space where those with small gardens will find suggestions and inspiration. Seating is coming soon, too! The broad pale green bowl in the container area will be used to make floating arrangements of clematis.
The Egg
Nothing in bloom
Artist James Harrison donated a handsome structure he created using the proportions of a Fabergé egg; hence we call it The Egg. It occupies the round foundation of the long-gone Luscher Farm silo. The cottage garden herbaceous perennials and volunteer annuals (the sunflowers are full of American Goldfinches nearly all day, every day) make a mad display at the feet of the clematis climbing The Egg through the spring and summer.
In 2022 we altered the clematis planting to include some of the magical hybrids and species selections made by the late Ton Hannink, a past president of the International Clematis Society. What better memorial to the man than his plants?
Mr. Western Bluebird is a frequent percher on The Egg, reminding humans that the mealworm feeder is a thing that exists and always needs replenishing.