Clematis 'Juuli'

Clematis 'Juuli' was bred in 1984 by the Estonian breeder Uno Kivistik from Clematis integrifolia and named in 1988 – after the Estonian word for "July", the month in which it begins to flower. Its star-shaped, roughly 10 cm flowers open purplish-blue and mature to a rich blue with a darker violet-blue central bar on each of the four to six sepals, set off by golden-yellow anthers on white filaments.

'Juuli' flowers from June to September, making it a reliable bloomer right through the summer. At around 150 cm, it belongs to the non-climbing clematis: rather than twining, it simply leans on its support – ideal for low trellises, among perennials and shrubs, in containers, or as a loose ground cover in sun to semi-shade. It also copes well with hot summers.

'Juuli' is reliably hardy (zone 5, down to about -28 °C) and easy to grow, with modest demands. Cut the plant back hard to about 25 cm in March – this encourages vigorous new growth and abundant flowering into autumn. The variety reblooms reliably and was featured as the International Clematis Society's Clematis of the Month in October 2016.