Clematis 'Little White Charm'

Clematis armandii 'Little White Charm' is a compact selection of the evergreen Chinese wild species Clematis armandii from the Netherlands, also known in the trade as 'Meyeniana' and registered with the International Clematis Society in 2005. Its white to creamy white flowers, lightly pink-tinged at the base, are smaller than those of many other armandii varieties at around 4 to 5 cm, but make up for it with an intense fragrance, appearing in dense clusters against leathery, dark green foliage.

Growing to around 400 cm, 'Little White Charm' stays noticeably more compact than more vigorous armandii varieties, making it well suited to smaller gardens, containers or a slender trellis. It flowers from March to April, making it one of the earliest climbers of the year. It performs best against a warm, wind-sheltered south- or west-facing wall with free-draining, fertile soil, where its evergreen foliage provides year-round screening.

Its hardiness rating is zone 9 (-6.6 to -1.2 °C), so 'Little White Charm' overwinters reliably mainly in mild locations and with the protection of a wall. It belongs to pruning group 1 and flowers on the previous year's wood, so pruning is only needed if necessary, right after flowering. Cut it back to around 200 cm in May to encourage vigorous new growth and abundant flowering the following year.