Clematis occidentalis
Clematis columbiana
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
Columbian virgin's bower, rock clematis
viny, climbing or trailing (plants scarcely viny perennials in var. dissecta).
viny, climbing or trailing (mainly rhizomatous, not viny in var. tenuiloba).
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.
blade consistently 2-3-ternate;
leaflets diverse in shape, thin or ± succulent, usually deeply lobed, margins serrate.
sepals violet-blue, reddish violet, or white, lanceolate to ovate or elliptic-oblong.
sepals violet-blue (rarely white in var. columbiana), lance-ovate to ovate.
Clematis occidentalis
Clematis columbiana
Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).
The name Clematis columbiana was formerly misapplied to C. occidentalis var. grosseserrata; it is still associated with that taxon in some horticultural and popular publications. In such w C.columbiana is usually called C. pseudoalpina.
The two varieties of Clematis columbiana, although strikingly dissimilar in their extremes, intergrade extensively. The phenotype of C.columbiana var. tenuiloba may be at least in part a response to habitat; in some areas it grows on exposed summits while var. columbiana occurs nearby at lower elevations. In other areas, however, such as the Killdeer Mountains of North Dakota and the Black Hills of South Dakota and Wyoming, only the tenuiloba extreme is present.
The Thompson Indians used plants of Clematis columbiana medicinally in a head wash for scabs and eczema (D. E. Moerman 1986; varieties were not specified).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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 |
1. Aerial stems elongating, viny, 0.5–1.5(–3.5) m; ultimate divisions of leaves often more than 5 mm wide, thin. | var. columbiana |
1. Aerial stems tufted, not viny, usually less than 0.1 m; ultimate divisions of leaves mostly 1.5–5 mm wide, ± succulent. | var. tenuiloba |
- Local floras:
BC, 
OR, 
WA - Local Web sites:
Flora NW, 
Go Botany, 
IL Wildflowers, 
MD Biodiversity, 
MI Flora, 
MN Wildflowers, 
PNW Herbaria 
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist (observations)
USDA Plants Database- LBJ Wildflower Center
- SEINet
- Plants of the World Online
- Encyclopedia of Life
- Wikipedia
- Google Image Search
