Clematis occidentalis
Clematis crispa
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
blue-jasmine, curly clematis, curly virginsbower, marsh clematis, swamp leather flower
viny, climbing or trailing (plants scarcely viny perennials in var. dissecta).
viny, to 3 m, glabrous or sparsely to moderately pilose-pubescent, denser at nodes.
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 1-2-pinnate or rarely a few simple or 3-foliolate;
leaflets 4-10 plus additional ± tendril-like terminal leaflet, usually lanceolate to ovate, occasionally linear, unlobed or proximally 3-5-lobed, (1.5-)3-10 × (0.1-)0.4-4(-5) cm, thin, not conspicuously reticulate;
surfaces glabrous, not glaucous.
terminal, 1-flowered;
bracts absent.
sepals violet-blue, reddish violet, or white, lanceolate to ovate or elliptic-oblong.
bell-shaped;
sepals distally strongly spreading to recurved, violet-blue, lanceolate, 2.5-5 cm, margins proximally thick and tomentose, distally broadly expanded, 2-6 mm wide, thin, crispate, less conspicuously tomentose than proximal portion, or glabrate, tips acuminate, abaxially glabrous.
bodies appressed-puberulent;
beak 2-3.5 cm, appressed-puberulent.
= 16.
Clematis occidentalis
Clematis crispa
Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Clematis crispa is highly variable in leaflet width, and conspicuous variation may occur on a single plant (R.O. Erickson 1943); no discontinuity or geographic correlation exists that would permit the recognition of varieties. The dilated, petaloid sepal tips and thin, crispate, broadly expanded sepal margins are diagnostic for this species.
(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 |
- Local floras:
BC, 
OR, 
WA - Local Web sites:
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