CROWFOOT FAMILY RANUNCULACEAE 
VIRGIN’S BOWER 
Clematis virginiana L. 
The various species of Clematis differ from most other 
members of the Crowfoot family in having opposite instead 
of alternate leaves, and in being climbing plants. The 
climbing habit gives 
a plant the advant- 
age of being able to 
get its leaves up in- 
to the air without 
expending energy 
and material in con- 
structing supporting 
tissue for holding 
its own stem erect, 
but it has the dis- 
- advantage of mak- 
ing the plant depen- 
dent upon finding 
something to climb. 
This and other 
members of the 
genus are greatly prized as ornamental vines. 
The Virgin’s Bower may be seen trailing gracefully over 
fences or clinging to the branches of shrubs or trees, especially 
in lowlands along streams or in moist lanes, from Georgia and 
Tennessee to Manitoba and Nova Scotia. It climbs by twisting 
its leaf stalk about supports, often to form delightful shaded 
arches which amply justify its common name. 
The green or purple-stained stems are often 12 feet or more 
in length and usually much branched. The vine is sometimes 
woody at the base but usually is not and dies to the ground each 
year. The root is perennial. The coarsely toothed leaflets of the 
opposite leaves are dark green, silky on the lower surface when 
young and smooth when mature. 
The dioecious flowers are produced from July to September. 
There are no petals but the 4 or 5 white or greenish white sepals 
are petallike, and the light green stamens and pistils are numer- 
ous. The long feathery styles remain on the akene fruits and 
aid in their dissemination. 
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