Clematis ‘Blue Angel’ climbing through rose ‘Little White Pet’

Clematis ‘Blue Angel’, also known as ‘Blekitny Aniol’, is a beautiful, reliable clematis, producing flowers from June to September. The gorgeous pale, mauvy-blue flowers have a pretty satin sheen across their deeply textured surface. At dusk the flowers become almost luminous.

This clematis is one of many bred by Brother Stefan Franczak, a monk who for more than 50 years was gardener at the Jesuit Theological College in Warsaw. It was given the RHS Award of Garden Merit in 2002.

As a viticella type of clematis, it can be pruned hard to a pair of new buds in February. I planted mine about seven years ago and it just gets better each year. Generally, clematis take a while after planting to get established in the border, so be patient and you will be rewarded with some fabulous flowers.