Caring for a Japanese Anemone Plant
The Japanese anemone is considered the epitome of autumn beauty, and I think that consideration is much deserved! If you are looking for the perfect plant to take over once your summer flowers have withered, you should definitely consider buying a few Japanese anemone plants to try out. To give you an idea about the care involved in growing anemones, we are going to take a look at how to plant anemones and the general care in maintaining them throughout the year.
First, let’s talk a little about the makeup of the plant. Anemones can grow to a height of anywhere from one to five feet and bloom to reveal sleek and brightly-colored petals. When fully bloomed, the flowers are about two to four inches in diameter, which gives them the excellent advantage of flexibility. They can provide a soft accent to your garden or be planted as the main focus. Most popular blooms are pink or purple, but they are also available in white.
You should be able to purchase seeds from your local plant nursery or garden center; however there is also a great selection of the Japanese anemone to choose from at many online garden stores. Once you have your seeds, take a bit of moist soil and place it in a plastic bag. Take care to ensure that the soil isn’t overly wet as it will rot the seeds. Place the seeds in the soil inside the bag, then place that bag inside the refrigerator. After about two weeks, transplant the soil and seeds into a small container and allow the seeds to sprout indoors. After the seeds have sprouted, go ahead and transplant them into their permanent home. This should be done either in the early spring time or late autumn.
To do this, dig up the soil to create a bed for the flowers. The size of the bed depends on how many anemones you intend to plant. Smaller species need to be placed at least six inches away from one another and larger species at least a foot away from one another. If you are unsure how large your chosen species will grow, ask an assistant at the garden nursery before you make a purchase. When choosing the spot for the bed, bear in mind that anemones can grow in full sunlight, but they do best if they are grown in an area that offers partial shade. Before you replace the soil in the bed, mix a bit of compost in with the soil. This will help give your anemones a great boost of nutrients to help them establish their roots. Water the bed well until the soil is moist, but not muddy.
General maintenance is pretty easy—you’ll actually be amazed at how easy it can be to care for such a pretty plant! Anemones need to be watered on a regular basis. During a particularly hot and dry summer they may need to be watered every week. The Japanese anemone is pretty hardy in cool climates, but if you live in an area that has particularly harsh winters, you may want to consider planting your anemones in a large flower pot instead of in the ground. This will make it easy to move the plant indoors if need be. After the threat of harsh frosts has passed, usually in the early spring time, you can safely move the plant back outside to a partially sunny spot.
Growing anemones can be an extremely rewarding experience and is easy enough that even a novice gardener can pull it off! Who says you have to be born with a green thumb to have a pretty garden?