Clematis tangutica 'Radar Love'

Radar Love golden clematis

I can only guess that his plant was named as a tribute to the group that wrote the song "Radar Love" -- Golden Earring. And truth be told, if I was an earring-wearing sort of fellow I could probably get by clamping a couple of these flowers to my earlobes.

But I'm not, so I'll have to content myself by leaving the flowers on the plants. They need jewelry too!

These blooms are stately and graceful -- you wouldn't have caught Liberace wearing them. Hanging down like small, yellow lanterns whose edges curve up, the flowers brighten the landscape anywhere they grow. In the fall the flowers turn into small tufts of silvery, mop-headed seeds that are ornamental in their own right.

This clematis is extremely vigorous and free-flowering and will tolerate a wide range of conditions. However, drainage is critical -- it must drain well in the winter or the plant will rot. It also has a fibrous root system, so once you plant it, don't move it.

It's fairly drought tolerant as well, but in the first year it will need a lot of water as it gets established. If you have it, add water-absorbing polymers to the soil. If you don't have it, no problem -- just make sure that it stays moist! Prune it back in the winter just above the 2nd or 3rd set of buds, about 12-18" above the ground.

I love this clematis against dark backgrounds. Let it wander through Sambucus 'Black Beauty' for an amazing display.

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(c) 2007 Christopher P. Lindsey