The term Japanese anemone is a little misleading because Anemone hupehensis, the parent of many of our garden hybrids, is from China — although they have been adopted, grown and much loved in Japan for hundreds of years. These anemones are not to be mixed up with the spring flowering and far more diminutive A. blanda and A. coronaria grown from autumn-planted bulbs. They are all within the buttercup family Ranunculacae, but Japanese.
Japanese anemones put on a stunning show in late summer and early autumn. Open blooms in pale pink or white float on tall stems, above attractive foliage.
Japanese anemones make an ideal choice for growing in woodland locations or beneath trees. They thrive in shade, cope with dry soil and work well in pots.
They can be invasive or weedy in some areas, throwing out suckers from the fibrous rootstock, to rapidly colonise an area : they can take some time to become established, but once established they can be extremely difficult to eradicate.