Japanese Anemone, Windflower genus Anemone hupehensis
Japanese Anemone, Windflower genus Anemone hupehensis
Monthly Theme: Winds of change
Winds of change are in the air as we rapidly approach autumn. It seems like the minute we turn the calendar to September 1st, the days grow shorter, the nights cooler, and autumn hangs heavily in the air. Though fall is a beautiful time of the year in Northeastern Ohio, for gardeners specifically, it’s sad to know our time in our gardens and in the soil are coming to an end. Soon we’ll have to clear away the spent flowers, harvest the last veggies, dig up those tender tubers, put away all the outdoor furniture, and prepare our plants and ourselves for another long winter.
This month’s feature plant is the Japanese Anemone, Windflower genus Anemone hupehensis. This late summer to fall overachiever brings much-needed flowers to the garden when so many other flowers are already done for the season.
Years ago, I was a member of the F.A. Seiberling Nature Realm’s Herb Society. Besides sharing our knowledge about plant life, we volunteered to maintain the herb garden on the property. I acquired my Windflower plant from an Herb Society Field Trip. I believe my starter plant was Japanese Anemone, Windflower genus Anemone tomentosa Robustissima. I just call her Windflower – she likes that best! It’s been happily growing in my yard ever since that outing.
There are three types of Windflowers: 1) Mediterranean, which blooms in spring and summer, 2) Fall-flowering, which blooms in late summer through the fall, and 3) Japanese Anemone, which is one of the most popular and the species I grow in my yard. The different anemone species come in an array of colors: red, white, purple, blue, deep rose, and yellow. The Japanese Anemone is pale pink. They grow a single 5-petalled blossom upon a tall dark green stem, which allows them to gracefully dance and sway in the breeze. The flower is approximately a 2” circle with a green button-like center, which is surrounded by yellow stamens.
How to Plant
Plant in Full to Partial Sun (they don’t mind a little shade!)
Find a location with enough space so it can spread
Plant 20” apart
Normal, Clay, Loam, Sand, Acidic
Moist, but well-drained soil
Smarty Plants Fun Facts
Japanese Anemone, Windflowers belong to the Ranunculaceae family
Full sun to Partial sun
3’-5’ tall
General purpose fertilizer
Low/easy maintenance
“Like wildflowers; You must allow yourself to grow in all the places people thought you never would.” E.V.
The More You Grow
Windflowers are native to China, but have been cultivated in Japan for hundreds of years. In the 1800’s, the plant was brought from China to England, and fortunately made its way to the states. There are more than 120 species of anemones.
Windflowers are resistant to insects and diseases as well as deer and rabbits. Plus, the butterflies love them. They are another easy to grow perennial that are adaptable to most growing conditions. They provide one of the longest blooming periods in the garden and work well as cut flowers. Don’t be fooled by their delicate appearance, they are stronger than they look.
Are you ready to grow your own Windflowers? You can divide a mature plant, take root cuttings in the spring or even germinate from seed, but that will be your slowest option. Windflowers spread by underground runners.
The leaves tend to blacken in winter, so I like to cut them back in the fall and give them a little blanket of compost for the cold winter ahead.
How about some more gardening trivia? Windflowers are actually perennial herbs. Windflowers don’t have any scent or nectar (so, the bees are out of luck with this plant). Windflowers are also known as Japanese thimbleweed and Chinese Anemone. In Greek, the word anemone means daughter of the wind, which is probably how they got their common name Windflower.
Sidebar for my gardening friends: I recently watched a documentary about Les Quatre Vents Garden in Canada called, “The Gardener.” Gardener, Frank Cabot created one of the finest gardens in the world. If you’re interested, the film is available on Amazon Prime.