Clematis vitalba L., Traveller's-joy
Account Summary
Introduction, neophyte, naturalised garden escape, rare. European temperate, widely naturalised beyond its native range.
1951; MCM & D; railway crossing at Aghalurcher Old Church.
Throughout the year.
Growth form and preferred habitats
This vigorous deciduous perennial with its climbing, scrambling and trailing stems belongs to the only genus in the family Ranunculaceae that contains woody members. Typically it clambers over shrubs and trees, or clings on walls or rocks, holding onto its support by the twining stalks (petioles) of its compound, once-pinnate, opposite leaves that act like tendrils. The grip of the petiole-tendrils is very tight, and as they age they harden and become wire-like, so that C. vitalba sometimes strangles and kills the stems of the plants supporting it (Melderis & Bangerter 1955; Step & Blakelock 1963a).
Being deciduous, the leaves of C. vitalba drop off in the late autumn, although their twisted tendril-like petioles persist for a while after the leaf blades have disappeared. During the winter, the plant relies for its entire support on the entanglement of its woody stems with those of the tree or shrub on which it is climbing and despite winter storms this always seems to suffice (Fitter 1987).
Soil preferences
The species performs best on base-rich or calcareous soils, of which at least in certain parts of Britain and Ireland, it is a useful and reliable indicator species (Lousley 1969, p. 15). In central Europe, however, Ellenberg (1974) found that C. vitalba grows on a wide range of soils from weakly acid to weakly basic. However, to really thrive it requires a soil with moderate to high fertility and medium to good drainage. In another English study, low calcium levels in soil appeared to retard the growth of the species (Buxton 1985).
A detailed experimental investigation of the species soil nutritional requirements in New Zealand found that growth of C. vitalba increased with increasing levels of lime; this was especially so when this was accompanied with increasing rates of applied phosphate. Maximum growth occurred at pH 4.7, while plants were killed by a pH as low as 3.7, presumably due to the toxicity of available aluminium at this acidity (Hume et al. 1995). This study also showed that the plant's response was to high pH and/or low aluminium concentrations, rather than to high concentrations of calcium, indicating that at least in New Zealand, C. vitalba is not a true calcicole species (ie lime-loving) (Hume et al. 1995).
While showing a definite preference for calcareous or base-rich soils, C. vitalba is not completely confined to them, but may also occur on other dry, stony sites and on disturbed, enriched soils, including on waste ground and in rock quarries (Sinker et al. 1985).
Origin of most Clematis plants
The garden source of the C. vitalba plants found in the wild in Britain and Ireland is often not immediately obvious. The genus Clematis is a very popular, indeed at present a very fashionable horticultural subject, with many very beautiful species and legions of novel varieties widely available in the nursery trade. However, C. vitalba itself is much too rampant and weedy a plant to be grown by many gardeners on its own account. The answer to this apparent garden usage, yet lack of decorative worthiness, has to do with the horticultural production of rapidly flowering new Clematis varieties and especially of sterile hybrids such as the familiar C. × jackmanii. Hybrids and other varieties can be multiplied by internode cuttings, but a flowering plant of the desired hybrid or variety is more quickly and more certainly obtained by grafting the variety on to a seedling rootstock of C. vitalba, or alternatively on another cultivated form, C. viticella (Purple Clematis).
If the grafted individual is planted with the region of the tissue union below the soil surface, after a few years the grafted variety will have developed its own root system (Salisbury 1935, p. 151). On the other hand, if an inexperienced gardener plants the graft with the union exposed, there is nothing to prevent the C. vitalba rootstock developing its own competing stems. In addition, if the grafted plant is incorrectly pruned the scion may be damaged, killed or entirely removed, again allowing the C. vitalba rootstock to take over. Such plants invariably prove too dominant or rampant in the garden setting and they eventually end up being discarded on refuse tips, manure heaps, or on waste ground, where they may survive and continue to grow, reproduce and release their wind-borne seeds into surrounding wild habitats.
Fermanagh occurrence

C. vitalba is either deliberately planted, or much more probably, a naturalised wind-dispersed garden escape in Fermanagh, growing in just a few old, rather neglected hedgerows and thickets. The first record of this climber in Fermanagh was made as late as 1951, incidentally providing a very good example of the lack of previous recording of alien and introduced species in the county. It was discovered in what was then a very typical habitat of the species − by a railway crossing. C. vitalba is very much associated with railways throughout the British Isles (Hackney et al. 1992). Previously, when the Fermanagh railway was in operation, C. vitalba grew alongside the permanent way, and having plumed achenes for fruit, it is very easy to imagine it readily spreading along open areas on embankments, cuttings and road crossings. After the closure of the railway in 1957, although it could equally disperse along roadsides, the species had fewer opportunities for colonisation and it has almost certainly dwindled to arrive at the current level of rarity. We cannot know this for certain, the plant having only ever been recorded in seven Fermanagh tetrads, six of them with post-1975 records. Occasionally, however, as at Gubbaroe on the limestone shore of Lower Lough Erne, when it grows in full sun, colonies of C. vitalba become so vigorous the plant can cover and dominate very large sections of hedgerow and scrub thicket. In such situations, it may totally obscure and overwhelm young trees and shrubs and even threaten older, established plants.
The other Fermanagh record details are: Carrickreagh Bay, Lower Lough Erne, 1983, RHN; Scottsborough lakelet, 28 August 1988, RHN & RSF; Cloughmore, 2 km SE of Rosslea, 28 August 1988, RHN & RSF; ride in conifer plantation, Gubbaroe Point, Lower Lough Erne, 1 January 1990, RHN; Cleenishgarve Island, Lower Lough Erne, 17 June 1990, RHN; Killadeas Td, Lower Lough Erne, July 1993, I. McNeill; near old house, E of Gubbaroe Point, Lower Lough Erne, 18 April 1998, RHN; near old house, Mullaghfad Td, E of
Brookeborough, 21 September 1998, I. McNeill; Gublusk Bay, Lower Lough Erne, 8 August 1999, RHN; same site, 12 October 2002, I. McNeill; fence on Irvinestown Road, Enniskillen, 19 September 2010, RHN & HJN; Carrickreagh Bay, Lower Lough Erne, 29 September 2010, RHN.
Flowering reproduction
C. vitalba flowers rather late in the year from July to September and the branched clusters of creamy or greenish-white, star-like 2 cm diameter flowers, like those of Caltha and Anemone, are petal-less. The usually four, but occasionally five or six sepals, which are hairy on their outer surface, again take on the role of the missing flower whorl (Webb et al. 1996). The Clematis flower has a faint but pleasant vanilla fragrance (Genders 1971), but it does not produce any nectar for pollinating visitors. The flowers are visited by flies and by bees that collect the abundant protein-rich pollen as a food reward and carry out cross-pollination. Wind-pollination may also be involved, but the extent of this in unknown.
Fruiting and dispersal
The characteristic fruits are produced in the autumn in large numbers, and usually sufficient silvery achenes are retained on the receptacle to keep the plant conspicuous in the hedgerow throughout the winter months. It has been estimated that around 17,000 seeds (achenes) are produced for every 0.5 m2 of C. vitalba canopy and they are dispersed by wind, water, people and other vertebrates (Cronk & Fuller 2001, p. 70). In linear habitats, eg along roadsides and beside railway lines, the dispersal of the many achenes of C. vitalba with their firmly attached white or silvery grey, long-plumed, feathery styles is obviously enormously facilitated by the sucking linear slipstream of swiftly moving traffic.
Germination and seed survival
Study of C. vitalba germination ecology in New Zealand has shown that achenes (ie single seeded dry fruits), retained on the vine over the winter, have a high degree of dormancy and viability, and the sporadic release of the seed from the parent plant effectively acts as a form of aerial seed bank (Bungard et al. 1997). The published survey of soil seed banks in NW Europe contains very little information on C. vitalba, but one report did suggest that a short-term persistent buried soil seed bank may exist (ie seed surviving between one and five years) (Thompson et al. 1997). In addition to a minimum light requirement (equivalent to 5% of full sun), the achenes require a period of chilling to break dormancy, conditions that effectively time germination to the spring following their production.
Behaviour as a serious weed in New Zealand
Although over most of its European range C. vitalba is usually an innocuous climber, the species can become a serious weed in young forestry plantations causing losses due to overgrowth of saplings. In New Zealand, it is a particularly vigorous and harmful invasive alien in forestry plantations and also in conserved remnants of native podocarp forest and it is responsible for losses of both forest structure and indigenous species biodiversity (Ogle et al. 2000; Hill et al. 2001). C. vitalba was first recorded as a weed in New Zealand in 1940 (Webb et al. 1988), although it was known much earlier in gardens and as a local garden plant escapee. It is thought to have arrived as a garden plant from Europe, and the first herbarium specimen of a wild plant of the species was collected in 1936 (West 1992). C. vitalba now occurs as an adventive species almost throughout the lowlands of New Zealand, except for regions north of latitude 37˚S (Webb et al. 1988; West 1992). It is probably the most publicised environmental weed in New Zealand, and community groups, government departments, local authorities, schools and paid contractors have tackled infestations over large and small areas, either mechanically or chemically (Timmins 1995). It has come to public notice mostly because it invades and smothers indigenous forest. In 1998 it was the subject of 37% of the complaints about plant pests made to the Regional Council which oversees the indigenous forest area around Taihape in central North Island, New Zealand, which was more than any other species, including agricultural weeds (Rowatt 1998). The seriousness of its weed status is illustrated by the fact that research is underway to identify an insect suitable for biological control, and the introduction of the European leaf-miner Phytomyza vitalbae Kaltenbach which attacks the species, is being actively considered (Hill et al. 2001).
In the warm temperate and moist to wet conditions prevailing in New Zealand, C. vitalba can regrow from fragments after cutting and this is recognised as important in its invasive spread in this part of the world. Regeneration of fragments is related to age, since older stem sections have better water retention and larger nutrient resources available than softer, young tissues (Kennedy 1984). Under the prevailing growing conditions the species has a high growth rate, with young plants and new shoots extending up to 2 m per year. If given full sun, plants also reach reproductive maturity early in life, producing seed when one to three years old and reproducing vegetatively after just one year's growth (Cronk & Fuller 2001, p. 71).
Irish occurrence
C. vitalba is an established alien in Ireland, where although widely scattered throughout, it is very much more frequent south of a line between Limerick and Dundalk.
Fossil record and species status in Britain
Despite an extremely skimpy fossil record in Britain from the Atlantic Period onwards (7,500-5,200 BP)(Godwin 1975, p. 119; Rackham 1980, p. 108), C. vitalba is at least traditionally regarded as native in most of the area of England and Wales south of a line between Anglesey and The Wash. North of this juncture it is considered an alien introduction and its presence diminishes rapidly towards S Scotland (Preston et al. 2002). It is difficult to envisage exactly what criteria determine the distinction between native and alien in these circumstances (Webb 1985). It is sensible to take a cautious approach when attempting to interpret the published map (Preston et al. 2002) and, indeed, for any species great care is needed when distinguishing native from alien status for regions on the same land mass.
European and world occurrence
Beyond Britain and Ireland, C. vitalba is considered native in S, W and C Europe and has alien status in a narrow zone north of its native range in Holland, Denmark and Germany (Jalas & Suominen 1989, Map 1679). It is also regarded as native in N Africa, W Turkey, the Lebannon, the Caucasus, N Iran and Afghanistan (Griffiths 1994; Jonsell et al. 2001). As already mentioned, it is a very invasive naturalised introduction in New Zealand and is also naturalised in parts of both S Australia and N America (Cronk & Fuller 2001).
Knowing the extent of the major weed problem this alien climber has created in New Zealand over the past 50 years and the threat it poses to the survival of remnants of indigenous vegetation and rare species on those islands, it is rather surprising that at least one horticultural supplier is still offering C. vitalba for sale to gardeners in N America, although it does warn of its vigour and potential spread (http://www.botanical-journeys-plant-guides.com/clematis-vitalba.html, accessed 19 January 2016). As Cronk & Fuller (2001) point out, "It is important that the problems associated with it are made known so that future introductions to potentially 'invasible' [a horrid, invented word] areas are prevented."
Toxins
Like other members of the family, C. vitalba contains an appreciable amount of the poisonous substance, protoanemonin and, although animals rarely browse the plant because of the acrid taste and irritant effect on the mouth, it is known to have killed cattle. Contact with the plant sap can also blister the skin (Cooper & Johnson 1998).
Names and uses
'Clematis' is derived from the Greek 'klema', meaning 'a vine branch', alluding to the vine-like twining climbing habit of the plant. The Latin specific epithet 'vitalba' translates as 'the white vine' and refers to the wild species (Johnson & Smith 1946).
There are a large number of English common names in existence: Grigson (1955, 1987) lists 36. 'Travellers’ Joy' was a name coined by John Gerard for his English herbal of 1597, presumably because he knew that the plant grows on waysides and hedges. The most widespread English common name is 'Old Man's Beard', a reference to the silvery-white twist of long, feathery styles that adorn the fruit achenes. It should be remembered that very often in folklore the 'old man' referred to is the Devil. Similar allusions include 'Bushy Beard', 'Daddy's Whiskers', 'Grandfather's Whiskers' and 'Father Time'.
Other names refer to the rope-like nature of the older climbing stems, eg 'Bullbine', 'Hag-rope' and 'Devil's Guts'. The woody branches with their characteristic flaking stringy bark have been used to make lightweight baskets in the past (Hutchinson 1972). In Devon, Clematis stem was woven to make the bottoms of pots for catching crabs (Vickery 1995, p. 375).
Another group of names indicates the use of stems as a cheap tobacco substitute, eg 'Boy's Bacca', 'Gipsy's Bacca', 'Tom's Bacca', 'Smoking Cane' and 'Poor Man's Friend'. According to Grigson, the young and the poor used to smoke cigar lengths of the dry stem, "as they draw well and do not burst into flame". Personally, I cannot imagine the desperation and the taste! However, there is evidence that this type of cigarettes was also smoked elsewhere, as there are equivalent names for the plant, eg 'Rauchholz' ('smoke wood') in German, 'Smookhout' in Dutch, and 'Fumailles' and 'Bois à fumer' in French (Grigson 1955, 1987). If anyone is tempted to try this, beware; unless the stem is dead and completely dry the irritant toxin is present and can cause ulceration of the lips and mouth (Mabey 1977, p. 159).
There are also a number of other peculiar, unexplained ideas contained in further quite widespread alternative English names, for instance, 'Honesty', and some connection with the virtuous Virgin Mary, for example, 'Lady's Bower' and 'Maiden's Hair' (Grigson 1987). Prior (1879) reckoned the name, 'Virgin's Bower', which was also used by Gerard (1597), alluded not to the Virgin Mary, but rather to the virgin Queen Elizabeth. In names, as in other matters, truly it is often easier to pose a question than to answer it!
In herbal and homeopathic medicine, several European species of Clematis, being diuretic and diaphoretic, have been used in treating ulcerous diseases such as syphilis, gonorrhoea, cancer and other inflammatory conditions including those of the eye (Grieve 1931). According to this herbal source the roots and stems of C. vitalba bruised and boiled for a few minutes in water and then digested for a while in sweet oil, made a cure for itch. There is folklore indicating that a C. vitalba stem twisted into a ring and worn round the neck was used in herbal medicine to cure convulsions in children (Vickery 1995, p. 375).
Considering the poisonous nature of the species, an interesting usage of it as food has been recently published. In a remote and isolated valley in NW Tuscany called 'Garfagnana', traditional gathering and use of a wide range of herbaceous plants has survived, so that for example, the inhabitants make a vegetable broth containing at least 20, but often more than 40 wild plants (Pieroni 1999). The soup recipe does not contain C. vitalba, but it is the main ingredient in a very popular vegetable omelette. Young shoots are boiled before they are incorporated with eggs, and sometimes with cheese, and the mixture fried so that the protoanemonine is inactivated (Pieroni 1999).
Threats
There are no conservation problems locally, but rampant C. vitalba can smother other plants.