Anemone nemorosa - European wood anemones
Anemone nemorosa
European wood anemones
This lovely early spring flowering plant has many common names including all of the following Wood Anemone, Lady's Nightcap, Moonflower, Nightcaps, Old Woman's Nest, Wind-Flower, Wood Crowfoot, Wood Windflower, smell fox, and thimbleweed.
As a native to much of Europe it is well loved in many communities hence its variety of common names.
It is grown in many gardens and parks as a spring flowering ground cover. Its early spring flowering brings a wonderful freshness to the soring scene. In the home garden it produces many flowers and a lovely display.
They grow quickly from underground root-like stems (rhizomes) in early spring and the foliage dies back down by mid-summer to become summer dormant so plant under shrubs and trees with hosta, ferns and other late flowering shade-lovers.
The rhizomes spread just below the soil surface, forming long spreading dark brown clumps that grow quickly enabling it to spread rapidly in woodland conditions to colonise large areas.
The light green leaves are divided into three segments and the flowers are produced on short stems held above the foliage with one flower per stem. Flowers emerge shortly after the foliage emerges from the ground.
The flower is 2 centimetres diameter, with six to ten tepals (flower segments that look like petals) with many stamens. In the wild the flowers are usually white but may be pinkish, lilac or blue, and often darker on the back. The flowers are pollinated by insects.
The plant contains poisonous chemicals that are toxic to animals including humans, but it has also been used as a medicine. All parts of the plant contain protoanemonin, which can cause severe skin and gastrointestinal irritation, bitter taste and burning in the mouth and throat, mouth ulcers, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and hematemesis.
Cultivars
Many cultivars have been selected for garden use, such as Anemone nemorosa 'Allenii' which has large blue flowers. It has been awarded an Award of Garden Merit (AGM) H4 by the Royal Horticultural Society.
Over 70 cultivars have been listed and some of those most widely available are:
- 'Alba Plena' - A beautiful perennial with thin, branching rhizomes that form stems with long stems. Bears double white flowers. Find out more at Anemone nemorosa 'Alba Plena'
- 'Allenii' - large lavender-blue flowers, often with seven petals (named after James Allen, nurseryman who was known as the Snowdrop King)
- 'Bowles' Purple' - purple flowers (named after E.A. Bowles, well known plantsman and garden writer)
- 'Bracteata Pleniflora' - double, white flowers, with green streaks and a frilly ruff.
- 'Robinsoniana' - pale lavender-blue flowers (named after William Robinson, plantsman, early developer of the herbaceous boarder, promoter of the wild garden and garden writer)
- 'Royal Blue' - deep blue flowers with purple backs
- 'Vestal' - white, anemone-centred flowers
- 'Virescens' - flowers mutated into small conical clusters of leaves.