Clematis

Clematis is a genus of about 300 species within the buttercup family Ranunculaceae. Their garden hybrids have been popular among gardeners, beginning with Clematis × jackmanii, a garden standby since 1862; more hybrid cultivars are being produced constantly. They are mainly of Chinese and Japanese origin. Most species are known as clematis in English, while some are also known as traveller's joy, a name invented for the sole British native, C. vitalba, by the herbalist John Gerard; virgin's bower for C. viticella; old man's beard, applied to several with prominent seedheads; leather flower for those with fleshy petals; or vase vine for the North American Clematis viorna.

Etymology

The genus name is from Ancient Greek clématis, ("a climbing plant"). Over 250 species and cultivars are known, often named for their originators or particular characteristics.

Botany

The genus is composed of mostly vigorous, woody, climbing vines / lianas. The woody stems are quite fragile until several years old. Leaves are opposite and divided into leaflets and leafstalks that twist and curl around supporting structures to anchor the plant as it climbs. Some species are shrubby, while others, like C. recta, are herbaceous perennial plants. The cool temperate species are deciduous, but many of the warmer climate species are evergreen. They grow best in cool, moist, well-drained soil in full sun.

1101 Clematis

1101 Clematis is a minor planet orbiting the Sun that was discovered by German astronomer Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth on September 22, 1928, in Heidelberg. Initially it received the designation 1928 SJ. It was named for the clematis flower.

Photometric observations made in 2003 at the Santana Observatory in Rancho Cucamonga, California, give a synodic rotation period of 12.68 ± 0.01 hours. The light curve shows a brightness variation of 0.40 ± 0.05 in magnitude.

This object is the namesake of a dynamic family of 5–16 asteroids that share similar spectral properties and orbital elements; hence they may have arisen from the same collisional event. All members have a relatively high orbital inclination.

See also

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