All references say that clematis like moist soil, but I suspect that
is an urban myth. C. vitalba grows on chalk, which dries out fairly
well, and C. flammula and C. cirrhosa seem to be plants of the maquis
and similar dry-summer ecologies. When we were on holiday in France,
the people we were staying with pointed out that their C. cirrhosa
was growing where the soil was very dry in summer, and it grew as a
summer-deciduous plant.

Also Bean says that it typically grows only a few feet high, but my
neighbour (no gardener!) has one growing 25' up a conifer. My attempts
to grow C. cirrhosa have been a dismal failure, but I am going to try
again, planting it in a place where it DOESN'T get as much water!

What are people's experiences with this?