E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia
Clematis occidentalis (Hornem.) DC. purple virgin's-bower (blue clematis; Columbia bower; Columbia virgin's bower; western blue virginsbower) Ranunculaceae (Buttercup family)
General: Perennial vine; stems climbing to 2 m high or trailing on the ground to 5 m long.
Leaves: Opposite, long-stalked, firm, 3-parted, the leaflets short-stalked, lance egg-shaped to triangular, 2-11 cm long, thin, not lobed or occasionally 1- to 3-lobed, margins usually entire, occasionally shallow-toothed, hairy when young, becoming smooth, tips pointed; the stalks persisting, acting as tendrils.
Flowers: Inflorescence of nodding or inclined, solitary flowers on long, erect stalks at ends of short branches from previous year's stems, rarely terminal on long shoots of current year's stems, the flowers bisexual; petals absent; sepals 4, usually becoming wide-spreading, violet-blue to pale blue, narrowly egg-shaped, 3-6 cm long, soft-hairy, tips sharp-pointed; stamens 20-50; pistils 40-175.
Fruits: Achenes, elliptic, soft-hairy; beaks 3-5 cm long, feathery-hairy.
3. Sepals cream or white.....................................C. vitalba
Source: Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
Habitat / Range
Mesic to dry rocky slopes, thickets, bluffs and open forests in the steppe to subalpine zones; frequent in S BC east of the Coast-Cascade Mountains, less frequent northward; E to SK and S to WA, ID and MT.
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range. (Updated August, 2013)
