Clematis FOREVER

These adorable climbers offer months of colour

- CHRIS MORLEY

Vine romance

Clematis are deciduous and evergreen climbers with a small footprint but a mighty visual impact, adding trails of sumptuous blooms for up to 12 months of the year. Use them to brighten a fence, twirl around a wigwam in a pot, or shimmy over shrubs. In the wild, they grow by the forest edge, so are most at home when planted in partial shade and allowed to climb up to the sun.

Drama school

Bring a floral boost to the garden in early summer with showy, star-shaped clematis in shades of pink, blue, violet and white. Everyone's favourite, 'Nelly Moser', is an eye-catcher, with pale pink and cerise petals, while 'Niobe' smoulders with claret blooms and golden anthers. Both are suitable for a north- or east-facing wall, where the colours won't fade in direct sun.