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Clematis virginiana
Also called Virgin's Bower, Virginia Clematis, Virginia Virgin's Bower, Virginia Bower
Devil's darning needles is a native North American climbing vine in the buttercup family that twists its leafstalks up to 3 to 6 m. It grows best in full sun to light shade and adapts to many soil types.
Clematis virginiana (also known as devil's darning needles, devil's hair, love vine, traveller's joy, virgin's bower, Virginia virgin's bower, wild hops, and woodbine; syn. Clematis virginiana L. var. missouriensis (Rydb.) Palmer & Steyermark ) is a vine of the Ranunculaceae (buttercup family) native to North America from Newfoundland to southern Manitoba down to the Gulf of Mexico. The rationale for some of the common names is unclear, as they include examples normally applied to unrelated plants, including twining parasites (e.g. "devil's hair" for Cuscuta). The name "Love Vine" also is applied to alleged aphrodisiacs, such as Caribbean species of Cassytha, which are unrelated to Clematis, not being in the family Ranunculaceae.
Suited for USDA hardiness zones of 3 to 9, C. virginiana is not commonly planted in gardens and landscapes in most places. However, it is sold by some native plant nurseries and some specialty and large conventional nurseries.
What is usually sold at most conventional nursery or garden center is the similar sweet autumn clematis, Clematis terniflora, favored due its heavier leaf coverage, pleasant aroma, and ability to flourish more in shade. Due to its propensity for self-sprouting, the rampant growing sweet autumn clematis quickly can become invasive when introduced to the native habitat of C. virginiana.
C. virginiana is native to the eastern section of North America, ranging from as far south as the gulf to southern Ontario/Québec; and going as far west as the Missouri River and Great Plains Boundary, reaching into Nebraska and Kansas. It has been observed in Europe and the western United States., but does not appear to be an established threat to ecosystems.
Rush Stem Clematis · Clematis akebioides · Alpine clematis · Goat's Beard · Evergreen Clematis · Clematis aromatica · Pine hyacinth · Bigelow's leather flower · Traveler's-joy · Satincurls · Gold Wool Clematis · Early Virgin's Bower
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Clematis virginiana by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
Pet safety from the ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists.
