Clematis occidentalis
Clematis viticaulis
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
grape clematis, grape leather-flower, Millboro leather-flower
viny, climbing or trailing (plants scarcely viny perennials in var. dissecta).
erect, 2-5 dm, finely and densely hirtellous.
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 elliptic-lanceolate to narrowly ovate, unlobed, (2-)4-8 × 1.5-3.5(-4.5) cm, thin, not conspicuously reticulate;
surfaces abaxially sparsely (rarely more densely) villous on veins, not glaucous.
terminal, flowers solitary;
bracts absent.
sepals violet-blue, reddish violet, or white, lanceolate to ovate or elliptic-oblong.
urn-shaped;
sepals pale purple, often suffused with green abaxially, lanceolate, 1.4-2.5 cm, margins not expanded, thin, not crispate, puberulent, tips obtuse to acute, spreading to recurved, abaxially nearly glabrous to minutely puberulent.
bodies short-pilose;
beak coppery brown, 2-3.5(-4) cm, plumose.
= 16.
Clematis occidentalis
Clematis viticaulis
Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Of conservation concern.
Clematis viticaulis is known only from shale barrens developed from the Upper Devonian Brallier Formation in Bath and Rockbridge counties of western Virginia.
The coppery brown hairs on the mature beaks are useful for distinguishing this species (C. S. Keener 1967).
(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:
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
