Windflower, Anemone x hybrida

Overview

Anemone x hybrida, commonly called windflower, Japanese anemone, or thimbleflower, is a hardy herbaceous perennial in the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae). They are all the result of crossing two or three species, A. hupehensis, A. vitifolium, and A. tomentosa, that are actually native to China but were erroneously called Japanese anemones because of an early record of one plant from Japan. Plants are hardy in zones 4a to 8b.

This is a vigorous, low-maintenance species, with a fibrous-rooted woody base that forms neat, dense, compact mounds of foliage that is nearly evergreen in mild climates. The glossy basal foliage only grows 12 to 18 inches tall, but when in bloom the plants are typically 3 to 4 feet tall. The palmate, toothed dark green basal leaves are lightly covered with fine hairs. It spreads by shallow creeping, wiry black rhizomes.

Windflower blooms over 5 to 8 weeks from late summer into early fall, with clusters of showy flowers held well above the foliage on long, wiry stems. Each 2 to 3 inch wide single to semi-double, open-faced flower has 6 to 9 brilliant white overlapping tepals and numerous bright yellow stamens in a ring surrounding a chartreuse center. Flowers are visited by bees and butterflies and the inflorescences make good cut flowers. The flowers routinely bloom well past first frost and are followed by rounded seed heads at the end of the stems, although they rarely produce seeds.

General Care of Windflower

Windflower grows best in full sun to part shade in evenly moist but well-drained soil rich in organic matter and can also thrive in clay soils. It does not tolerate dry soil, but also doesn’t like wet soils, especially in winter. Once established in ideal conditions (loose, organic soil) it can spread, potentially overrunning other perennials, so it is best suited to larger landscapes. Despite their tendency to spread, they are not considered invasive in the Upper Midwest. New plants that develop from the rhizomes on the edge of the colony as it encroaches on other areas are easily dug or pulled.

Mulch the plants to keep the roots cool. The species does not have any serious insect or disease problems, although slugs, blister beetles, and flea beetles may attack them, and are not favored by deer or rabbits. Contact with the sap may irritate the skin in some people. All parts are toxic if eaten.

How to Use Windflower in the Landscape

Use Windflower as a specimen or in masses in cottage gardens, perennial borders, rock gardens, or open woodland gardens where their graceful flowers stems waving in the breeze above the dark green leaves can be appreciated. They can be planted at the front of a bed, as the mound of foliage is low, and the slender flower stems make it a see-through plant late in the season. White flowered types (like ‘Honorine Jobert’) light up a partly shaded garden, where the brilliant white flowers are easier to see out of the glare of direct sun. White flowers also prominently stand out against a dark background, such as a yew hedge or painted wooden fence or wall.

Combine fall-blooming windflower with spring bulbs and spring and summer blooming perennials to provide interest throughout the growing season, or pair it with fall-blooming aster, bugbane (Actaea (= Cimicifuga), chrysanthemum, eupatorium, goldenrod, monkshood (Aconitum), sedum, or toad lily (Tricyrtis) – depending on sites conditions – for a spectacular display late in the season. It pairs nicely with white-variegated hosta and ornamental grasses. Plant it near early-spring bloomers, such as bleeding heart (Lamprocapnos (= Dicentra) spectabilis), where it will fill the void as the early bloomers begin to go dormant in late summer. Where it spreads vigorously, use it as a tall ground cover. It can even be used in large containers.

How to Propagate Windflower

Windflower cultivars can be propagated by division in spring or root cuttings taken in late winter. The plants are late to emerge in spring and may be slow to establish (especially from the older, woody rootstock), but can eventually spread by rhizomes to form large colonies.

Recommended Windflower Cultivars

A number of selections are available. They include:

• ‘Andrea Atkinson’ is a vigorous, white flowered variety with white, single to semi-double flowers.
• ‘Honorine Jobert’ (sometimes listed as ‘Alba’) is hybrid discovered in Verdun, France in 1858. It grows 3 to 4 feet tall with pure white flowers. It was named the Perennial Plant Association’s 2016 Perennial Plant of the Year®. This cultivar was rated good (4 out of 5 stars) in a plant evaluation study by the Chicago Botanic Garden

• ‘Könign Charlotte’ (sometimes listed as ‘Queen Charlotte’, the name translated from German) is compact (2 to 3 feet tall), with semi-double, pink flowers.
• ‘September Charm’ grows 3 to 4 feet tall and 2 to 3 feet wide, with silvery pink, single flowers.
• ‘Whirlwind’ is a semi-double white flowered variety.