Clematis ‘Amber’ takes home prestigious Chelsea award

THE NETHERLANDS, Ijsselstein --- Clematis chiisanensis AMBER ('Wit141205'), bred by Marco and Bianca de Wit and managed by Plantipp B.V., has been named RHS Chelsea Plant of the Year 2016.

The jury’s favorite was praised for its nodding heads of a unique yellow/cream coloring as well as the flowering from early to mid-summer with a second flush in September.

Peter van Rijssen with the Chelsea Plant of the Year winner.

“We are still catching our breath from the 2014 edition of the Flower Show when Hydrangea ‘Miss Saori’, bred by Ryoji Irie and managed by Plantipp, won the RHS Chelsea Plant of the Year competition,” said Reiner van Rijssen, owner of Plantipp. “Now we start all over again with ‘Amber’! We are extremely proud of Marco and Bianca!” 

Peter van Rijssen, representative of Plantipp, and a member of Nursery Management’s 2016 Next Generation, said social media activity went through the roof when the word got out that Clematis ‘Amber’ won.

“Our Plantipp Facebook page exploded when we released the news,” van Rijssen said. “So many congratulations and thumbs up for Marco and Bianca de Wit and their ‘Amber,’ it is unbelievable!”