Clematis

What Clematis is

Some species are shrubby, while others, like C. recta, are herbaceous perennial plants. Species are mainly found throughout the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, rarely in the tropics. The woody stems are quite fragile until several years old. The leaves are opposite and divided into leaflets and leafstalks that twist and curl around supporting structures to anchor the plant as it climbs. The name comes from Ancient Greek, where it meant a climbing plant.

Scent of the flowers

The white flowers of C. armandii are fragrant. The flowers of C. montana, which are white or pink, are odorous. C. vitalba has scented greeny-white flowers. The flowers of nine wild Clematis species and cultivars together emitted 162 volatile compounds at the full-openness stage. The volatiles fall mainly into four chemical classes: terpenoids, benzenoids, fatty acid derivatives and nitrogenous compounds. The terpenoid components are primarily attributed to D-limonene, linalool and E-nerolidol.

Chemistry and toxicity

The entire genus contains essential oils and compounds which are extremely irritating to the skin and mucous membranes. In C. vitalba, crushing the plant releases protoanemonin from its precursor ranunculin. Protoanemonin has vesicant properties, which cause rashes or blistering upon contact with the skin or mucosa. At room temperature, protoanemonin spontaneously dimerizes into the compound anemonin.

Growth of C. vitalba

Clematis vitalba is capable of rapid growth, climbing several times faster than English ivy, and each plant may produce in excess of 100,000 seeds. In New Zealand it is declared an unwanted organism and cannot be sold, propagated or distributed.

Uses

Despite its toxicity, Native Americans used very small amounts of clematis as an effective treatment for migraine headaches and nervous disorders. Clematis is also a constituent of Bach's Rescue Remedy. In Italy, the sprouts of C. vitalba are harvested to make omelettes.

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