Common Name: wood anemone
Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Ranunculaceae
Native Range: Europe, Turkey
Zone: 5 to 8
Height: 5.00 to 1.50 feet
Spread: 0.50 to 1.50 feet
Bloom Time: April to May
Bloom Description: White sepals (infrequently tinged with pink or purple)
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Maintenance: Low
Suggested Use: Naturalize
Flower: Showy
Culture
Easily grown in moist, humus-rich, fertile, slightly acidic, well-drained loams in part shade to full shade. Incorporate leaf mold into the soil. Best in part shade (avoid hot afternoon sun). Naturalize under trees and large shrubs. Plants begin to go dormant in summer as temperatures rise and tree leaves reach mature size (more shade). Keeping soils moist helps prolong the inevitable disappearance of the leaves as dormancy sets in. Established plants tolerate some drought when dormant. Propagate established plants in late summer by division after the leaves fade. Set rhizomes 2" deep and 6-8" apart.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Anemone nemerosa, commonly called wood anemone, is a low-growing herbaceous perennial that spreads by branched and creeping rhizomes to form an attractive ground cover in shaded woodland areas. It is native to northern and central Europe including Great Britain, but not to areas along the Mediterranean. Plants typically grow to 6-10" tall. Flowers bloom in spring on short upright stems rising slightly above a bed of trifoliate, deeply divided, dark green leaves. Each flower (to 1 1/2" diameter) has 5-8 showy petal-like white sepals (infrequently tinged with pink or purple and rarely with blue) with a center ring of yellow stamens surrounding green stigmas.
Genus name is often said to be derived from the Greek word anemos meaning wind.
Problems
No serious insect or disease problems.
Uses
Naturalize in shaded woodland areas or use in woodland garden borders.