Anemones are springing up
By Lynda Papesch - The Marlborough Express
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Home and Garden
Recent sunny days have tempted the first of the spring flowers to boom, among them the popular anemone.
The anemone is a genus of about 120 species of flowering plants in the buttercup or ranunculaceae family. They are closely related to Pasque flowers (Pulsatilla) and hepaticas (Hepatica), and take their name from anemos, the Greek word for wind.
Grown from tubers, anemones thrive in the wild in many parts of Europe, North America and Japan.
In New Zealand, they are grown mainly as a spring garden filler or for commercial use.
There are three main types of anemone flowers:
The spring-flowering type, which has either rhizomes or tubers.
The tuberous Mediterranean, which flowers in spring and summer.
The larger autumn-flowering type, which blooms from late summer to autumn and tends to have fibrous roots.
Among the best known is Anemone coronaria, or the poppy, a tuberous-rooted plant, with parsley-like divided leaves and large, showy blossoms on stalks 1.5m high. The flowers are mainly scarlet, crimson, blue, purple and white. Double-flowered varieties are also available.
Anemones thrive in partial shade, or in full sun, provided they are shielded from the hottest sun, and they prefer a well-drained slightly acid soil, enriched with well-rotted manure or compost. They can be grown from seed or tubers.
Different anemones have different growing requirements, but most should be planted in autumn.
TIPS
Before planting, soak the tubers for a few hours or overnight. If not sure which end is up, lay them on their sides.
Water regularly during the first growing season to establish a deep, extensive root system.
For a neat appearance, remove old foliage before new leaves emerge.
Divide clumps every two to three years in early spring.
Cut right back to the ground in late autumn.
