Decumaria barbara Vicki - Woodvamp

The Decumaria barbara ‘Vicki’, sometimes called climbing hydrangea, is a vigorous climbing plant from the Hydrangeaceae family. This variety can cling to vertical surfaces using climbing root stems, similar to ivy. This liana offers an abundant flowering of fragrant white umbels in late spring and early summer. Like climbing hydrangeas, it is used to adorn shady walls or pergolas. Its cultivation is best suited to relatively mild and humid regions in our country, in a cool, well-drained soil, in a semi-shaded position sheltered from cold winds.

Belonging to the Hydrangeaceae family, Decumaria barbara is a fast-growing, evergreen liana, capable of reaching a height of 8 to 10 meters by clinging to supports with adventitious roots that develop on its long stems. This species is native to the humid forests of the southeastern United States, where it mainly thrives in shaded and humid areas such as valley bottoms and riparian forests.

The cultivar ‘Vicki’, selected by the botanist Michael Dirr, stands out for its semi-evergreen foliage, bright green in summer turning to golden yellow in autumn. The oval leaves measure about 5 to 10 cm long and are glossy. Flowering, which occurs between June and July, takes the form of graceful and fragrant white flower panicles, attracting pollinators. The floral clusters can reach 12 cm in diameter. They consist only of small fertile flowers, exuding a musky and honeyed scent. This flowering, highly visited by pollinating insects, is a treasure for bees. In terms of hardiness, the plant can tolerate temperatures dropping down to -10°/-12 °C when mature.

Decumaria barbara 'Vicki' thrives in partial shade in any humus-rich soil, not overly dry but not waterlogged either. Plant this beautiful liana at the base of a north or west-facing wall, or on the bare trunk of a tree. It can be paired, for example, with plants that thrive in cool partial shade such as its cousin the climbing hydrangea (Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaris), or the Hydrangea seemanii, as well as a Clematis montana that prefers shade at its base, it will reach for the sun on its own.