Clematis viticella has been grown in English gardens since the sixteenth century, arriving from southern Europe and western Asia with a reputation for toughness that it has thoroughly earned. Where large-flowered hybrids collapse from wilt, this species soldiers on. The flowers are smaller than the showier cultivars — nodding, deep purple, each one opened to reveal a cluster of yellow stamens — but they arrive in such numbers, from midsummer until the first frosts, that the effect is far from modest. The dry, feathery fruits that follow carry their own ornamental weight.

Prune it hard in late winter, down to about a foot from the ground, and it will race back to 10 or 15 feet with impressive speed. Roots prefer shade while the top reaches for sun, so mulch the base or plant a low companion to shade the crown. It will climb an arbor or fence, spill from a container on a patio, or wander through a woodland planting without demanding much in return. For gardeners who have lost other clematis to disease, viticella is often the one that finally stays.