Sweet autumn clematis invasive?

16 years ago

Looking for advice on the advisibility of planting Sweet Autumn Clematis (clematis ternifora). I have read that it can be invasive but many of those reports come from warmer zones. I'm in Kansas City and would put the vine on my eastern fence, which gets a good dose of afternoon sun. I don't want to be digging volunteers up and, because the fence borders a neighbors property, I don't want to cause them problems either. I used to have a lovely honeysuckle on that fence and my neighbor hacked it to pieces when it flopped over onto her side.

So who has experience with this plant?

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Comments (8)

duluthinbloomz4
16 years ago
I was a warm zone SAC grower (zone 7) and it did seed all over. It was a prolific grower, would be cut to the ground each year, and the next season it would throw out 30' of regrowth.

The biggest problem you'll have in a colder zone is it will potentially (100% guarantee it will) flop over onto your neighbor's side of the fence and you'll run the risk of having it hacked down.

There are quite a few threads on Sweet Autumn Clematis on the Clematis forum, as well as the Vines Forum - check them out. And from what I can remember, while cooler zone growers marvel at its luxuriant growth, they don't find it to be freely self-seeding.
eviemp
16 years ago
I'm in the NW suburbs of Chicago and had a sweet autumn clematis for many years in the yard. I never saw any "volunteers" and never heard that it would spread. It does get much bigger than other clematis, but it was fine on a trellis. It never got out of hand,came back great every year and never had bugs. On the other hand, it does attract bees. I never noticed the nice odor it was supposed to have and was a little disappointed with that.

I did cut it almost to the ground every year.
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I think the term "invasive" gets thrown about too much without a good understanding of what it means. I know which forum and thread you were referring to and few of the plants discussed are truly invasive - that is, able to spread at will, usually by seed, and colonize natural areas to the detriment of native plant populations. Aggressive is another feature altogether and is typically used to describe garden plants that grow rampantly, spread easily or are difficult to eradicate once established in your garden, but do not pose a threat to natural habitats. I'd describe SAC as an aggressive vine in that it grows rapidly and is big. Allowing insufficient space for it in a small garden could pose problems :-) And while it may generate a few seedlings (mine never has), it certainly cannot be considered invasive in the correct use of that term.
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Tom I had it my garden for awhile, it has a haunting hawthorn like scent. I gave mine to my neighbor and planted C. tangutica in it's place, you know, the one with the lovely silver seed heads. Where I didn't find the sweet autumn to be overly aggressive here, but then, we do have cooler summer weather than some/most and I hear it blooms better in warmer climes so it might also grow more vigorously. It's another story with tangutica. I left it two years without cutting it back, it was magnificent with loads of yellow lantern shaped flowers and silver seed heads on at the same time, this one blooms all summer here. The next spring I kid you not when I cut it back...two truckloads to the landfill. Lesson learned each spring it will get wacked to the ground. A lot of the montanas are scented my wilsonii (Chocolate scented) some of the pinks like rubens and Elizabeth smell like vanilla. The montanas are blooming here now, the sweet autumn is much later, neither are repeat bloomers, O.K. the montanas do throw the odd flower later in the season but nothing to write home about. Annette
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RetroLady - I tried the silver lace vine, too. Bought it at Horn's as a very nice size plant. Made it 2 years and then died for some unknown reason. Anyway, I replaced it with S.A.C. and porcelain vine - both of which I really like. I plant a lot of things for my birds, and they love the berries on the porcelain vine. I bought a female bittersweet this year to go with my male and hope to have berries next year for it. I also have the Virginia Creeper (which is actually in my neighbor's yard, but the birds love the berries on it, and the sphinx moth cats I have found on it make it more than worthwhile to me. If you really want a fast growing, but not invasive vine, I would grow one of the clematis viticelli hybrids, like 'Polish Spirit'. It is easy to keep within bounds because you cut it down almost to the ground each spring and it rewards you with wonderful growth and flowers all summer. Most of the flowers occur in spring, but it continues to flower sparsely all summer long. It doesn't reseed at all, like SAC. The blooms are smaller than the bigger clematis in the jackmanii family, but it blooms so prolifically in spring, that it makes up for the bigger blooms. I have mine interspersed with C. tangutica, which blooms small yellow nodding blooms later in the summer, and passiflora 'Incense'. The 'Incense' is for the gulf fritillary caterpillars, and the blooms are outstanding. Have fun vining! Susan
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When the flowers start to fade, use old-fashioned manual hedge clippers to chop off the fading blooms so that it doesn't have the chance to go to seed. Also, this is a type 3 prune plant, so in late winter, before or just as buds start to swell, chop it down to about 3 buds per stem.
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kcbarbara
Original Author
16 years ago
Attracts bees, eh? I already have a problem with wasps and carpenter bees - bleah. As a general rule bees are welcome but I certainly don't need an invasion of them :)

The fence is about 7 feet tall and there is lots of room for the clem to go horizontal if I can train it that way. I'll have a talk with my neighbor and see what she says. She's very reserved and polite though and probably wouldn't tell me she hates the idea even if she does.

Barbara
dirtdiver
16 years ago
I also live in the Chicago area, by the lake, which gives us slightly longer springs and summers than most in the area. I'm pretty much zone 6. Sweet autumn clem does indeed self-seed for me, sometimes into the lawn. I just usually dig those up and give them away. If you let SWA clamber over a small tree or bush, it can be overwhelming to the host plant.

Still, I don't consider it to be an "invasive" vine, merely enthusiastic. And I've never noticed that I have a plague of bees, but then again I like bees.
cake
16 years ago
I'm in the Des Moines area, and yes my sweet autumn reseeds--but I've only counted 5-6 volunteers in that many years. Climbing over the fence sounds like the biggest risk for you, from what you say about your neighbor, since this vine can grow 15-20 feet long/tall. However, I enjoy it so much, I think it's worth having. Cut it back hard every year, and you'll be able to keep it in control.
kcbarbara
Original Author
16 years ago
How does it take to pruning during the growing season? I could always try to keep it under control that way.

I'm vacillating between the sweet autumn clematis and Polish Spirit, which is also supposed to be quite vigorous, though not invasive.

Hmmmm...
webkat5
16 years ago
A friend of mine who lives just north of the river has one growing and she gets volunteers (from seed) all over her yard....

I potted a couple up to bring home (have the room for them to go nuts)....
kcbarbara
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks for the input, Kat. I have a postage stamp sized backyard so the fewer invasives, the better. Although if they're easy to identify and uproot, that's not such a problem.

BTW, are you thinking of hosting an exchange get together this spring? I have travel plans for May so I'm trying to think far, far ahead.

Sweet autumn clematis invasive?

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Sweet autumn clematis invasive?

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