The white flowering vines you've been seeing along the roadsides, yards, and just about everywhere is Sweet Autumn Clematis. They are beautiful, hardy, and smell great, plus the seed heads are beautiful in their own right. What's not to like?.... Well, for starters they reseed so if you want to grow anything else, be vigilant. Don't let it go to seed. When the bloom has finished, but before the seed are mature, give the vine a violent pruning.They bloom on current season's growth, so you will not decrease next year's show.
For years I thought my SAC (Sweet Autumn Clematis) was either virginiana or paniculata, but each year I noticed more seedling plants and this year after doing a little research, I have concluded that what I have is probably C. ternifolia, one of the more invasive types from.. where else...Japan. The taxonomy of the SAC is out of control. Paniculata seems to be another name for ternifolia and that is not the end of the naming mess.
There may be dozens of different ones, but the only native may be virginiana, which is reported not to spread so readily. But I still like them anyway. If you are thinking of getting one, I will be glad to supply you with a plant,freshly dug. But you may want to enjoy them by the roadsides and stop and pick fistfuls of the flowers. They look wonderful alone in arrangements or as filler.
Looking back, I see I am beginning to repeat myself, maybe because the plants I like come around every year. Any way, the pictures are new and some of the ruminations.
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