Clematis 'Prosperity' and its Offspring

Clematis of the Month for April 2024

Described by Val Le May Neville-Parry
with thanks to Julian Noble for the first image

C. 'Prosperity', flowers, buds and leaves clearly indicate the chrysocoma genetic influence

C. 'Prosperity' is a wonderful montana and has withstood all that the weather has thrown at it since being planted in my garden in 2009. Having said that, it's a blighter to propagate. However, it makes an amazing seed parent, to date producing several stunning dwarf and compact new Montana plants.

Both C. 'Prosperity' and the pink and white C. 'The Jewell' have chrysocoma in their genes. They are relatively late flowering for montanas, have smaller, deeply veined leaves and flowers with exceptionally long stems. Both cultivars display blankets of flowers in their first flush. They reliably send out late 'bunches' of flowers into October, thus extending the montana season. This doesn't adversely affect flowering the following spring.

The first C. 'Prosperity' plant was donated to the Collection by the ever-generous Mike Brown in 2006. Mike spotted it as a sport of C. 'Continuity' in Mrs Caroline Todhunter's magnificent garden. Having failed to propagate it himself, he gave it to Wim Snoeijer. Wim succeeded. Mike's donated plant was dug up and destroyed by a badger. Replaced with a cultivar purchased from Thorncroft Clematis Nursery in 2009, the replacement has thrived and flourished, providing a spectacular montana display despite being planted in poor stony soil against an exposed south facing fence at the top of the steep bank behind the compost heap.

C. 'Prosperity', thick stems emerging from poor stony soil

Planted in a far from ideal position, poor soil, planting hole with emerging stems fully exposed to sun, west, south-west, south, south-east and east winds, it has been necessary to water with three gallons of rain water every month throughout the spring and summer months before top dressing with well-rotted two year old oak and apple leaf mould topped with a thick layer of By The Way compost in early spring, mid-summer and again in late autumn. This treatment has protected and fed the root system and enabled the plant to grow and flower brilliantly for the last fifteen years.

Clematis on the Web describes C. 'Prosperity' as 1.5-2 metres tall. [Editor's note: The RHS Clematis Register says this as well.]. It also says it's fragrant. My plant has six stems from the crown, each measuring 6m, three along a thick rope to the west and three trained to the east, providing a blanket of flowers in it's first flush. I can detect no fragrance. It gives a remarkable 12m display along the fence through the second half of May and throughout June. It's one of the last in the group to bloom usually flowering four to six weeks. It reliably sends out further sprays of large (for a montana), wide open, forward facing, crinkly edged, pure white flowers throughout summer and deep into autumn.

C. 'Prosperity' - buds and flowers in October 2023, with a new flush of flowers emerging along the length of the plant

Having chrysocoma in its genes, it has attractive deep green-bronze, shiny embryonic leaves emerging in early April.

C. 'Prosperity' - early emerging green-bronze leaves and minute bud

C. 'Prosperity' - green-bronze leaves and buds along the entire 12 metre length by 27 April 2023

The entire 12 metre stretch usually sports leaves and buds by the end of April, by which time I have many garden visitors to see the Collection. I make a point of showing guests the aerobic compost heaps and visitors invariably gasp on spotting the massive plant at the top of the bank, high above the wall retaining the compost. It's quite a show-stopper.

C. 'Prosperity' - 12 metre length across the top of the bank	C. 'Prosperity' - still perfect flowering in 21 July 2023, at the same time as C. var. wilsonii, it extends the montana season
C. 'Prosperity' - still perfect flowering in 21 July 2023, at the same time as C. var. wilsonii, it extends the montana season

As I say in paragraph 1, the parent plant is notoriously difficult to propagate so, as with C. 'The Jewell', which also has chrysocoma in its parentage, Julian Noble, secretary for the British Clematis Society, and I sowed seeds in 2011. Unfortunately I gave away the earliest two seedlings to emerge but kept four – two from Julian and two of mine. I hope the unknown recipients have enjoyed their plants. One retained seedling was a dwarf measuring a mere 30cm which sent out numerous stems. This was named in 2019, C. 'Brian Collingwood'. Brian was editor of the BCS Journal for ten years. The seedling first flowered in 2016. Sadly, it failed to produce viable seedheads and died in 2021. Equally sadly, all four rooted cuttings of C. 'Brian Collingwood' died in 2020 so it has ceased to exist. I have subsequently found most dwarf C. 'Prosperity' montana seedlings to be relatively short lived – about five to ten years. It would seem wise, therefore, to take cuttings once dwarf seedlings are one to two years old.

C. 'Brian Collingwood' - dwarf seedling, in flower 17th May 2020

A second C. 'Prosperity' seedling was named C. 'Maureen' and still survives. It is named for the friend who drove me to Bournemouth Hospital on New Years Eve 2009, the night my Chris died. [Editor's note: Chris was Val's husband.] This is another special plant. Not so dwarf as C. 'Brian Collingwood', it's compact at 1.5 - 1.8 metres (5-6 ft) tall and has flowered well in my poor soil since 2014 in a site exposed to fierce winds from all directions. The flowers and leaves are smaller than C. 'Prosperity' but the flowers have the same frilly margins and wide open flowers. C. 'Maureen' was propagated by Marcus Dancer Plants and sold until Marcus ceased trading in 2021. C. 'Maureen' was registered in June 2018.

Maureen with her named montana seedling, 25th May 2019
C. 'Maureen' flowers on 27 May 2023, towards the end of flowering - clearly showing leaves similar to C. 'Prosperity' seed parent

C. 'Maureen' - bottom left, 12 May 2022, showing relative compactness to other montana plants

C. 'Rhiannon' is a dwarf C. 'Prosperity' seedling. She is named for a young lady who used to visit with her younger sister and perform acrobatics on my wet sloping lawn – in their wellington boots. Ten years later Rhiannon has finished her degree at Exeter University. This seedling has relatively large flowers for such a compact plant, flowers have a hint of cream and slight perfume – I wish I knew the pollen parent. It sits in a long pot on a stand on my bedroom patio and is much admired by visitors. The stems hang down which suits this plant, displaying the flowers perfectly. I plan to register it soon.

C. 'Rhiannon' - 8 May 2022, a stunning dwarf pot plant

The fifth of the original C. 'Prosperity' seeds sown produced a plant with flowers virtually identical in size, colour, shape and form to the parent plant. The leaves are significantly different in form and colour. A local gardening friend, Jo, had been waiting to name a seedling for some years. It's possibly going to be C. 'CoJo'. Planted on the north wall of my home it has been slow to mature and, despite having such pretty flowers, they are sparsely spaced. It is also less vigorous than I would like. I plan to transplant it in a warmer, more fertile site. Jo doesn't want to give up on it yet.

Seedling of C. 'Prosperity' possibly named C. 'CoJo', currently budding up well

The last C. 'Prosperity' seedling was named in 2019 for the 50th wedding anniversary of my brother, Roger, and his wife, Lyn. Their daughter, Tamsin, is my God-daughter as well as my niece. They suggested the name C. 'TamLyn'. C. 'TamLyn' is a self-set seed, clearly with chrysocoma in the parentage, hence being included in this article. It is growing well in the ground, about five metres south of C. 'Prosperity'. It is unique, having green rather than pink on front and back of both buds and open flowers. C. 'TamLyn' 2018001 was registered in 2022.

C. 'TamLyn' - 7 June 2022, relatively late flowering and showing green veining on reverse with leaves indicating either seed or pollen chrysocoma heritage - that could point to C. 'Prosperity' as one of the parents as C. 'The Jewell' is some 75 metres distant and pink and white.

As you can see, some of the 'Prosperity' seedlings are proving to be exceptional. Their dwarf or compact size would suit smaller gardens and patios in pots. I will send 'Prosperity' seed for I.Cl.S. to distribute to members on request as well as seed mix from montanas growing all round my garden. I believe the genetic pool mix could produce some stunning dwarf and compact new cultivars for members.

Val Le May Neville-Parry