One vine, all the time

Southern California fans of graceful and dramatic clematis vines, better known on the East Coast, can rejoice. You can grow clematis with great ease here, according to this book written by a local who knows her subject. You can trust this information.

Even though she lives in a climate where clematis are not supposed to do terribly well, nearly 200 of these flower-heavy vines fill the small Irvine backyard of Edith M. Malek, the “clematis queen” and president of the American Clematis Society.

After covering how to grow the vines, the book moves on to how climate affects them, old wives’ tales, and growing them in containers or for cutting. There’s even a section on what to do if they suddenly up and die.

The bulk of the book lists kinds and cultivars with color close-ups of each flower. In these “portrait pages,” about 120 kinds are described and illustrated. If you fancy clematis, this is a must-have book, but those who simply thumb through it are likely to join their ranks.

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-- Robert Smaus