Anemone flaccida 'Futabazuru'

Double Faccid Anemone Ranunculaceae

A particularly choice Japanese form of the delightful Nirin-sō, and considerably more extravagant than the species. Futabazuru — ‘Two Cranes’ — is a rare, fully double form in which the normally simple white flowers are transformed into rosette-like masses of narrow, overlapping white segments. The effect is surprisingly sophisticated for such a tiny woodland plant.

The deeply cut, pale green foliage emerges early in spring, sometimes carrying subtle natural variegation, and makes an attractive carpet before the flowers appear. Unlike the ordinary A. flaccida, whose flowers are generally solitary or produced in the characteristic pairs that give Nirin-sō its Japanese name, ‘Futabazuru’ produces these remarkable double white flowers, usually around March–April. 

It is a genuine spring woodland ephemeral, retreating underground after flowering. Give it moist, humus-rich soil and partial shade, ideally beneath deciduous trees where it enjoys good spring light before the canopy closes. It is perfectly hardy and, once established, can spread by its slender rhizomes to form a lovely colony.

The species itself has long been gathered as a Japanese wild vegetable, although this is principally of ethnobotanical interest rather than a reason to raid your stock. As with the wild species, the foliage must never be confused with poisonous Aconitum. 

H7 –20°C and below
Height: 10–15 cm
Spread: 20–40 cm
Flowers: March–April
Soil: Moist, humus-rich and well drained
Aspect: Partial shade; spring sun beneath deciduous trees
Habit: Rhizomatous, gradually forming colonies
Flower: Fully double, pure white