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by Kymberly Taylor
In the tender energy of early spring, a spell of sweetness rises in the air, along with the wild idea that if I could plant red tulips from Amsterdam, my life would be changed. But in truth, as the garden stretches out before me, deciding what to plant is a bit daunting. Luckily, there’s help. In their wonderful new book Enduring Gardens: The Tame and the Wild, Campion Hruby Landscape Architects have many suggestions and planting lists for four-season gardens. As I paged through, I read that Anemone x hybrida is one of spring’s early bloomers, with the power to “wake up the garden from its inertia.”
What a wonderful thought! I picture my garden taking its first precious breath as the delicate blooms of the anemone drift in the air. I learned that anemone is an ancient perennial native to China and Southeastern Europe and that it belongs to the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae. The name derives from the Greek anemos, which means “wind,” and the suffix “-one,” which means “daughter of.” The Greeks nicknamed the anemone “Daughter of the Wind” because they believed it bloomed only when the wind blew. Our common name for this fluttering beauty is “windflower.”
Researchers at the Biotechnology Institute in Dalien, China, note that the anemone has long been used worldwide in folk medicine and ethnomedicine. Ongoing experiments reveal that this plant, which has more than 100 species, has anticancer properties as well as additional valuable medicinal compounds. The monks in the Middle Ages certainly valued the anemone and used its roots and leaves to heal respiratory and skin disorders. Native American tribes may have used the native Canada Anemone, A. canadensis, to treat headaches and sore throats. Keep in mind that, unlike its foreign cousin, this hardy low-growing “meadow anemone” thrives in Maryland’s river margins and moist woodlands, spreads quickly, and can form dense colonies. While not technically “invasive,” it is considered aggressive and should be managed by pulling up its roots.
Five to ten petals frame the “eye” of the anemone, whose simple face is bright with promise. However, its biochemistry is far from simple. The anemone is nyctinastic, which means it closes at night and opens in the morning. These are my favorite kinds of flowers! I observe this phenomenon daily when my giant Oxalis triangularis, named Gloria, folds her heart-shaped leaves around 4 p.m. I am always slightly alarmed, but happy to experience a new side of my shamrock; I sense her strength and have no choice but to respect her need for rest. As I gaze at her sleeping leaflets, a strange understanding washes over me, and I am reminded that it is time to wind down my own day. I also love that Gloria opens promptly the next morning. Like the oxalis, the anemone has no choice but to unfold, and, through its clear beauty, attract and nourish pollinators and awaken not just the garden but a sense that, indeed, all things are possible.
• ZONE: 7-10
• WHEN TO PLANT: Fall
• LIGHT: Full sun to partial shade
• BLOOMS: Early spring
• SOIL: Amended with humus
• WATER: Consistently moist but not waterlogged
• TIP: Soak tubers overnight before planting
Enduring Gardens: The Tame and the Wild by Campion Hruby Landscape Architects, campionhruby.com
Anemone medicinal plants: ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry and biology from The National Library of Medicine by
Da-Cheng Hao, Xiaojie Gu, Peigen Xiao, January 28, 2017, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5343163/
If you wish to see anemones in their medieval context, visit the Gardens of the Met Cloisters in northern Manhattan. Five kinds of anemones grow in the Judy Black Garden in the Cuxa Cloister. For more information, go to metmuseum.org.
© Annapolis Home Magazine
Vol. 17, No. 2 2026