Summer Snow / Paul Farges Clematis

Clematis x fargesioides Summer Snow / Paul Farges

'Summer Snow' is a large, vigorous climber which will need space in which to expand. It is happy planted in most aspects although, as with all clematis, it requires shade at its roots and prefers an alkaline to neutral soil.

The flowers, which are held in profusion from July through to the end of September, are white with anything from 4 to 6 petals, 4cm to 5cm across and carrying long stemmed cream coloured stamens which stand out prettily against the recurving petals. It requires no pruning after the first year and it self seeds readily.

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Great for your garden:

'Summer Snow' is an exceptionally vigorous climber that will happily cover a shed or an eyesore, clothe a wall or scramble over an arch or pergola. Best in full sun.

It is also very happy as ground cover and, after the first year's pruning, can be left to cover a large area of bare soil. 

As it flowers in summer, from June through to September, it can be planted alongside another vigorous clematis such as one of the montanas, when the flowering season will be extended from early spring until early autumn. It does need space in which to expand and is not suitable for small gardens and, due to its similarity in flower to our native wild clematis, it looks exceptionally good as part of a 'wild garden' planting.

Features:

• Flower colour: White with prominent creamy stamens
• Flower shape: Star shaped, recurving petals,
• Foliage: Mid-green
• Fragrance: Lightly scented
• Approximate flowering season: July - September
• Final height: 4-6m
• Pruning group: 3
• Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit 

Look out for:

Summer Snow Clematis are relatively disease free.

Did You Know? 

Bred in 1964 by two Ukrainian professors from Clematis potaninii var. fargesii and Clematis vitalba. They dubbed it Clematis x fargesioides, and it was registered as such by the communist regime, and initially by Western nurseries as well. However, this new hybrid species name has since been disputed and gently rejected in favour of the cultivar name Clematis Paul Farges, after the French scientist (1844-1912), explorer and Catholic missionary to China, who collected thousands of plants there.  

However, Paul Farges doesn't really have a ring to it, and in the mid-1990's Raymond Evison renamed it Summer Snow, an apt name that quickly caught on. It is not technically allowed under the Code of Nomenclature to change a cultivar name merely for sales purposes, so Summer Snow is a trade designation and therefore should be in capitals. Thus, the most official name is Clematis 'Paul Farges' SUMMER SNOW.

But we're old mates here, and just call him Paul. 

Images supplied by Clematis on the Web.

How to grow Clematis x fargesioides Summer Snow:

Clematis x fargesioides Summer Snow can be grown easily following the Clematis planting guide.

All clematis require a cool moist root run as the roots are delicate and can easily be 'burnt'. In a hole considerably larger than the root ball, put some good garden or multipurpose compost mixed with grit at the bottom to a depth of 3 or 4 inches.

Place the clematis in the hole, sprinkle some Root Grow around the roots and backfill with compost making sure that the plant is set at least 3" below the new soil level. By burying some of the plant stem in this fashion it ensures new root growth and helps prevent the occurrence of clematis wilt. If the plant is in full sun, shade around the roots with slates or broken pot.

In the first year cut all stems back to 30cm in February - after that no pruning is required just the removal of dead or dying material.