TRAVELLERS JOY |
CLEMATIS VITALBA |
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| Fig 1 |
DESCRIPTION: Height up to 30m. A wonderful perennial climbing plant with creamy-white flowers that are followed by the showy feathery seed heads that give the plant its other name of Old Mans Beard. The bark is fibrous and peeling with the stems having longitudinal grooves that can be felt upon handling. The plant is a vital food source to many moths including the V-Pug, Willow Beauty and Chalk Carpet. The leaves of this plant are tough and pinnate and found on stalks that wrap around other plants. DISTRIBUTION: Common in southern England and Wales. HABITAT: Prefers woodland edges, waste places or along hedgerows. FLOWERING TIME: July to August. |