Clematis dioica L.

• Authority

  Britton, Nathaniel L. Flora Borinqueña.

• Family

  Ranunculaceae

• Scientific Name

  Clematis dioica L.

• Description

  Species Description - Of interest as the only species of its family inhabiting Porto Rico, nearly all of the Crowfoot Family being natives of the temperate zones, this white-flowered, slender vine, often more conspicuous and attractive in fruit than in flower, occurs occasionally in thickets from sea-level up to at least 500 meters, in moist and dry districts; its range extends through the Greater Antilles, through the Lesser Antilles from Guadeloupe southward, and on the continent from northern Mexico to Brazil. This vine is desirable for arbors, but we have not seen it planted in Porto Rico. The plant shows much variability in leaf-form, and in hairyness. The genus Clematis is composed of about 25 species of perennial, more or less woody vines, natives of both the Old World and the New, most of them in the north temperate zone; the name is Greek, taken up for these vines by Linnaeus, perhaps originally applied to some other kind of climbing plant. They have opposite, stalked, compound, or sometimes undivided leaves, and usually numerous, rather small, white or greenish flowers in large clusters. There are 4 or 5, petal-like sepals, but no petals. The staminate flowers, borne on different individual vines than the pistillate, fruiting ones, have numerous, spreading stamens; the pistillate flowers have several pistils with 1-celled ovaries and long, silky or feathery styles, sometimes with a few stamens intermixed. The pistils ripen into smalll, 1-seeded fruits (schenes) appendaged by the long plumose styles. Clematis dioica (dioecious, staminate and pistillate flowers on different plants) is often high-climbing, several meters long. Most of its leaves are composed of 3 broad, stalked, pointed leaflets, various in shape from oval to nearly orbicular, and from 3 to 10 centimeters long, untoothed, or with, a few large teeth. The greenish-white, slender-stalked, flowers form clusters from 5 to about 15 centimeters long; the oblong, or elliptic sepals are from 6 to 9 millimeters long, and often densely hairy. The achenes are about 4 millimeters long, the feathery styles from 3 to 6 centimeters long.

• Discussion

  Cabellos de angel Tropical Virgin's Bower Crowfoot Family Clematis dioica Linnaeus, Systema Naturae, edition 10, 1084. 1759.