Clematis montana earns its species name: it is a plant of altitude, native to the mountain regions stretching from the Himalayas through China and Taiwan, where it spills down rock faces and scrambles through trees at the forest edge. In gardens it brings that same unstoppable energy, climbing 16 to 40 feet given sufficient structure and producing a waterfall of four-petaled pink flowers in spring that carries a distinctive vanilla fragrance. The flowers bloom on the previous season's wood, so pruning happens immediately after flowering rather than in late winter.

It tolerates partial shade but flowers most prolifically in full sun. The roots, like those of most clematis, benefit from cool conditions — a layer of mulch or low ground-cover plants shading the base while the stems climb into light. At full size, it can cover an entire wall or envelope a large pergola, making it one of the more dramatic large-scale vines available to gardeners in zones 6 to 9. Bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds all find the spring bloom valuable.