How to Successfully Plant Anemones
These include Anemone apennina; Anemone biflora; Anemone bucharica; Anemone deltoidea;
Anemone eranthoides; Anemone flaccida; Anemone glauciifolia; Anemone hortensis; Anemone leveillei; Anemone magellanica; Anemone nikoensis; Anemone petiolulosa; Anemone rupicola;
Anemone sylvestris; Anemone trifolia; and Anemone virginiana, just to name a few. These bright, colorful flowers are also called “Windflowers” or “Wind Poppies.” This nickname comes from the fact that the gentlest breeze will toss the petals to and fro, from side to side.
Since they grow gorgeous, eye catching blooms, I chose to fill in the space around my deck with Anemones last year. I liked the fact that these plants are perennials too. That means, they will bloom season after season with little or no additional help from me. So, they can save you time from planting too!
Anemones can be grown either indoors or outside. As I said, I chose to plant mine outside around my deck. They are planted either in the fall or in the spring, depending on the type of Anemone you have. The “De Caen”, for example, is planted in the spring after the danger of frost has passed. When you plant these bulbs in the spring, they flower in the summer. Plant them in the fall, and you’ll see their bright, colorful blooms in the spring.
Before you plant your Anemones, you should probably give them a long drink of water as I did. To do this, simply place the bulbs in an old bowl. Fill the bowl with a couple inches of tap water, then let them set for a few hours. While a water soak can encourage your bulbs to sprout faster, it can sometimes present a problem by encouraging the growth of mold too. Especially if you plant your bulbs outside in the fall when the temperatures are cooler. Therefore, I don’t always soak the bulbs I plant, no matter what type of flower they are. How do I decide? If we’ve had a dry summer, and the ground isn’t moist, I soak them. Otherwise I skip it.
Anemones need plenty of sunshine, so choose an area that gets sun throughout the day. The best soil for Anemones is drained, loose soil. You should work a bag or two of peat moss or manure into the ground before you plant your bulbs to help fortify the soil.
Then, when you’re ready to plant your Anemones, dig shallow holes in the dirt a few inches down. I spaced my flowering plants about five to six inches apart so they had plenty of room to grow.
Sometimes, you can look at an Anemone bulb and you’ll see a pointed part. This part is known as the “foot” or its “toe.” Ideally, the foot or toe is planted downward in the rich soil. But, don’t worry if you can’t see this part. If in doubt, simply plant the bulbs in their holes. The plants will figure out which way to grow. (Serious!)
Finally, cover the Anemone bulbs with dirt, and pack it down gently. Then water the soil thoroughly. When your flowers finally pop through the soil in the spring or summer, you’ll need to keep them watered and fertilized. Once they bloom, you can snip the stems of the Anemone flowers off to make a beautiful bouquet with.
You can also plant Anemones indoors in a flower pot. Again, used good draining soil and a pot that will allow the excess water to run off. Place the pot where it can soak up the sun rays most of the day. Then, keep the bulbs watered and fertilized.
My Anemones have done so well, and they were so easy to plant, that I bought more bulbs to plant this year.
