Forgot to mention....she doesn't like the yellow ones :)

Good old 'Jackmanii' blooms on new wood, which makes it hardy for us cold zoners.

Sharon

Be sure to plant a good four inches of the stem below the ground level, this will better help the plant to survive the winter ...

Terry

The good news about clematis is that most regions have trouble keeping the roots cool enough to grow well. As Jackmannii was suggested, my pick would be Nelly Moser (blooms early summer on last years growth and reblooms later on new wood). Then Blue Light and Josephine (these both bloom in spring on growth produced the previos season) and Sunset (same habit as Nelly Moser).

Whatever you get be sure to shade the roots by planting or putting something in front of them so they have continual shade for about 2 feet

how tall is you planter box? most are 16"- however any bed deeper than 6" will freeze harder in the winter and dry out faster in the summer esp. in a hot dry spell. Mulch heavily in the fall AFTER freezing helps.South facing beds are likly to experince greater amt of freezing/thawing- therefore more root damage.
my list would also include :
the smaller flwing species as they're generally stronger & hardier.
Alpinas;
Willy-pink
Pamela jackman-deep blue
Sibirica- white
Ruby- reddish/mauve
C. macropetala:
Markham"s pink
Maidwells hall
Snowbird
Bluebird- the more base the soil the bluer the colour
Ruby- small nodding bellshaped
Herbaceous types;
Bluebelle- purple blue white center
Recta -clustered white "purpurea"
Durandii- long lasting bloom(cut where 2 fuzzy buds are -just above this junction to increase size of plant and number of flowers.
Hope these help Lois

Heather,
Most of my clematis are planted against the foundation of the house.They thrive there. Last year I planted a couple Betty Corning in by a trellis in my yard. It is supposed to be quite hardy and has a long blooming season.

Blue Bird and Blueboy have the same bell shaped flowers and are super hardy. The only issues for me with these 2 is that they do not have as long of a blooming season.

Joe Zary is supposed to be another hardy clematis with a long blooming period. I'm hoping to find this one this year.

Shelley

My best two of the "not-so-hardy" are Jackmanii and Ville de Lyon. I've had them for years under the kitchen window. I just cut them to the ground in the spring, and away they go! Last summer I planted a couple of the Estonian varities (Ruutel and ?) against the house wall, so will see if they made it through the winter. It was a cold one!

On my garage wall and toping the arbour at the back of the yard I have Clematis virginiana (white)which blooms in August, and Blueboy which blooms in May/June. I don't do anything with these, except cut them back occasionally when they get out of hand!

Happy gardening!

Thanks everyone for your helpful advice.

The raised box is about 18" high. The nelly moser that was planted there before had it's roots shaded by mulch and by another large plant in front of it. I don't think I'd like to waste more money and buy another nelly moser, even though a couple of you have recommended it here. I'll definitely be looking into a couple of the other varieties that were mentioned.

Thanks so much for your ideas.....Heather

Heather, clematis are quite inexpensive at Canadian Tire and Walmart. They sell many of these varieties.

Of the local garden stores, I find Edward's has a great selection here in town and are cheaper than the others.

I have about 10 clematis... out of all of them the most success I've had has been Bill MacKenzie. Bill MacKenzie is a lot of yellow though. I have grown it for years on a chain link fence. Every year I cut it back down to about a foot from the ground and it grows back more bushy every year.

Below you'll find a link to some pictures and a description of it...

http://www.clematis.hull.ac.uk/hiviz-clemdetail.cfm?dbkey=439

You can use the same site above to look for pictures of almost any clematis you have interest in. I found the pruning group and flowering period information highly useful.

- Andrew

I can't believe I lost my Jackmani over winter. I've had it for 25 years! However, my Ville de Lyon (20 years old) is doing really well. The Estonian clematis "Ruutel" (second year)is doing very well as well as Viticella"negritianka", both of which I bought at Canadian Tire.

My Ville de Lyon didn't come back this year. I'd only had it for 5 or 6 years, but still. :( All the others came back, though and are doing well - well, they aren't blooming, but they look fine. Except for Tangutica- that one is nuts! LOL