Mukdenia acanthifolia

A little saxifrage with the foliage of a miniature Bergenia and the spring-flowering manners of a woodland aristocrat. Mukdenia acanthifolia forms a compact clump from short, thick rhizomes, producing rounded, heart-based leaves with sharply serrated, palmate margins. The foliage emerges bright green and develops excellent red to crimson autumn colour, giving the plant a second season of interest. 

In early spring, often before the leaves have fully developed, stout flower stems rise above the clump carrying generous sprays of small, creamy-white, star-shaped flowers with green centres. The effect is surprisingly floriferous for such a diminutive plant, and the rigid stems hold the flowers particularly well. 

Native to Korea, it is a plant of cool, moist woodland and rocky habitats. Its taxonomic history is rather less tidy: M. acanthifolia was described from Korea in 1941, but both Flora of China and Kew-related treatments have historically questioned its distinction from M. rossii. More recent molecular work, however, supports M. acanthifolia and M. rossii as distinct species, making the name rather more secure than older literature suggested. 

There is also an interesting ethnobotanical connection: Mukdenia belongs to a small group of East Asian saxifrages used in traditional Chinese medicine, although the medicinal literature is principally concerned with the genus rather than providing a well-established edible use for M. acanthifolia. 

Grow in partial shade, in moist, humus-rich but well-drained soil. A superb choice for the woodland garden, particularly where its early flowers and autumn colour can both be appreciated.

Height: 20–30cm
Spread: 30–45cm
Flowering: March–April
Foliage colour: Green, turning red/crimson in autumn
Hardiness: H5, approximately -15 to -10°C
Position: Partial shade to shade
Soil: Moist, fertile, humus-rich, well-drained soil
Habit: Rhizomatous, clump-forming perennial