Japanese Anemone: A Perennial to Fall For

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Gerald Klingaman

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Photo Credit: Mark A. Miller

Want something different for your fall garden? Try beautiful Japanese anemone to brighten your borders.

Fall gardens are largely given over to members of the daisy family – asters, chrysanthe-
mums and the like about. From the looks of many gardens, you’d think these are the only bloomers out there come autumn. But if you search a little, you’ll find a true garden gem: Japanese anemone.

A member of the Ranunculus family, Japanese anemone (Anemone x hybrida) has clusters of 2- to 3-inch-wide, pink or white flowers that appear in late summer and early fall. (You can find both single and double forms.) The flowers are held above the deep green, deeply notched trifoliate leaves. The entire perennial is somewhat sprawling and open, growing 2-4 feet tall – making the plant perfect for colorful fall borders.

Photo Credit: Gerald Klingaman

‘Honorine Jobert’ Japanese anemone is one of the most beautiful white flowers available for the perennial border.

One of the best and most popular of the Japanese anemones is the large, white-flowered clone ‘Honorine Jobert’. It was found by a French nurseryman in the 1850s, arising as a root mutation from the original hybrid. Mr. Jobert named it after his daughter Honorine.

Like any other plant in the garden, Japanese anemones need the right site to perform their best. These beauties grow in medium shade – like that cast under a high canopy of trees – in USDA hardiness zones 4-8. They’re happiest in areas with morning sun and afternoon shade where they’re protected from strong, drying winds. The east side of the house is an ideal location.

This perennial also relishes deep, rich, loamy, uniformly moist soil. To prepare a bed for Japanese anemone, be sure to incorporate a good amount of compost. The plant does best with a slightly acidic pH, between 5.8 and 6.5.

Photo Credit: Gerald Klingaman

Don’t know if you’ve got an anemone? Look for the conspicuous ring of yellow stamens around the central button of green.

Japanese anemone has poor drought tolerance and is equally sensitive to winter-wet conditions. I’ve also found it slow to establish. But once this fall bloomer is happy in a location, it’ll be long-lived and carefree. It will also spread – but don’t be in a hurry to divide your Japanese anemone, unless you want new plants to share with friends or to move to other areas of the garden. Springtime division is recommended.

If you’re tired of the same old autumn rigamarole, plant Japanese anemone! This beauty adds a whole new dimension of color and texture to your fall garden!

Facts

Japanese anemone is really native to China. It was probably introduced to Japan during the Tang Dynasty. The original plant is now called Anemone hupehensis, with the hybrids called A. x hybrida.
Japanese anemones were described and named from dried specimens found in Japan by Carl Thunberg (a doctor for the Dutch East Indies Company) in his 1784 Flora Japonica. It wasn’t until 1844 that live material was introduced to England by Robert Fortune, the plant explorer sent out by the Royal Horticultural Society. Shortly after its English premier, the plant (then known as Anemone japonica) was crossed with a Nepalese species called A. vitifolia, giving rise to the hybrids we now grow.

Tips

Japanese anemone seeds loose their viability almost as soon as they mature, so don’t try to grow these beauties from seed. Instead, propagate by root cuttings or division. For root cuttings, cut roots into 3-inch-long segments in late winter and layer them in a flat. Transplant the new plant to its own pot once new roots emerge. For division, remember that if a plant blooms in spring, you should divide it in fall, and if it blooms in fall, divide it in spring.

Faqs

Q: Do Japanese anemones have real petals?
A: Nope. The flowers lack true petals – the showy portion of the bloom is actually the sepals. The ring of yellow stamens surrounding a conspicuous, green button-like array of stigmas is an easy-to-spot characteristic of this plant.

Resources

You can learn more about Anemone x hybrida by visiting the Learn2Grow Plant Database.
Read More...

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