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blue clematis, clématite occidentale, Columbia bower, Columbia clematis, Columbia virgin's bower, purple clematis, purple virgin's-bower, rock clematis, western blue clematis, western blue virginsbower, western clematis

satincurls, virgin's-bower

Stems

viny, climbing or trailing (plants scarcely viny perennials in var. dissecta).

climbing, 3-6 m. Leaf blade pinnate or 2-ternate, 5-9-foliolate, membranous;

leaflets ovate to lanceolate, largest 4-9 × 2.5-9 cm, surfaces abaxially sparsely to densely pilose, adaxially glabrate;

proximal and lateral leaflets typically 3-cleft, unlobed or few-lobed, margins coarsely toothed or entire, surfaces sparsely pubescent or nearly glabrous; ultimate venation conspicuous.

Leaf

blade 1-ternate (or terminal leaflet sometimes ternate in var. dissecta), ± firm but not succulent;

leaflets lance-ovate to triangular or suborbiculate, lobed or unlobed, margins entire or toothed.

Inflorescences

axillary, 3-many-flowered simple to compound panicles with central axis.

Flowers

sepals violet-blue, reddish violet, or white, lanceolate to ovate or elliptic-oblong.

unisexual;

pedicel slender, 11-13 mm, to 2 cm in fruit;

sepals wide-spreading, not recurved, white to cream, oblong or obovate to oblanceolate, 6-14 × 2-5 mm, abaxially densely white-hairy, adaxially sparsely white-hairy;

stamens ca. 30-50;

staminodes absent or fewer than stamens;

pistils 18-35.

Achenes

ovate, ca. 3.5 × 1.5 mm, conspicuously rimmed, sparsely short hairy;

beak 2.5-3.5 cm.

Clematis occidentalis

Clematis catesbyana

Phenology Flowering spring–summer (May–Jul).
Habitat Disturbed or open, well-drained sites, frequently on limestone outcrops, coastal sands
Elevation 0-1200 m (0-3900 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CO; CT; DE; IA; ID; IL; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MT; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OR; PA; RI; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; NB; ON; QC; SK; YT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; FL; GA; KS; KY; LA; MO; MS; NC; OK; SC; TN; VA; WV
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Leaflets lobed or unlobed, margins entire or crenate-serrate (or terminal leaflet sometimes ternate); stems tufted or, if viny, up to 0.5(–1.5) m.
var. dissecta
1. Leaflets unlobed or some 1–3-lobed, margins entire or shallowly serrate; stems ± viny, climbing or trailing, 0.25–3.5 m.
→ 2
2. Sepals reddish violet, rounded-mucronate to nearly acuminate.
var. occidentalis
2. Sepals violet-blue to pale blue, rarely white, usually distinctly acuminate.
var. grosseserrata
Source FNA vol. 3. FNA vol. 3.
Parent taxa Ranunculaceae > Clematis > subg. Atragene Ranunculaceae > Clematis > subg. Clematis
Sibling taxa
C. addisonii, C. albicoma, C. baldwinii, C. bigelovii, C. catesbyana, C. coactilis, C. columbiana, C. crispa, C. drummondii, C. fremontii, C. glaucophylla, C. hirsutissima, C. lasiantha, C. ligusticifolia, C. morefieldii, C. ochroleuca, C. orientalis, C. pauciflora, C. pitcheri, C. recta, C. reticulata, C. socialis, C. tangutica, C. terniflora, C. texensis, C. versicolor, C. viorna, C. virginiana, C. vitalba, C. viticaulis, C. viticella
C. addisonii, C. albicoma, C. baldwinii, C. bigelovii, C. coactilis, C. columbiana, C. crispa, C. drummondii, C. fremontii, C. glaucophylla, C. hirsutissima, C. lasiantha, C. ligusticifolia, C. morefieldii, C. occidentalis, C. ochroleuca, C. orientalis, C. pauciflora, C. pitcheri, C. recta, C. reticulata, C. socialis, C. tangutica, C. terniflora, C. texensis, C. versicolor, C. viorna, C. virginiana, C. vitalba, C. viticaulis, C. viticella
Subordinate taxa
C. occidentalis var. dissecta, C. occidentalis var. grosseserrata, C. occidentalis var. occidentalis
Synonyms Atragene occidentalis C. cordata, C. micrantha
Name authority (Hornemann) de Candolle: Prodr. 1: 10. (1824) Pursh: Fl. Amer. Sept. 2: 736. (1814)
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