406 



HORTICULTURE 



March 21, 1914 



ANEMONES OR WIND FLOWERS 



Southern gales 

 are sweeping 

 over the hind, 

 breaking the hist 

 links of the icy 

 chain of winter. 

 The snow has 

 scarcely melted 

 away in forest 

 recesses when it 

 is succeeded by 

 white sheets of 

 Anemone nemo- 

 rosa and A. syl- 

 vestris, nestling 

 along the sunny 

 outskirts of the 

 woods. True har- 

 bingers of spring 

 they bend their 

 heads down low 

 to escape the vi- 

 olent tossing of 

 occasional rain- 

 storms, ready to 

 rise again at the 

 first inter\-al. A 



few weeks later, when visiting our previous fall plant- 

 ings of Anemone vernalis, alpina, narcissiflora and 

 ranunculoides along a path through thinly wooded sec- 

 tions, we behold light -winged flowers gently swaying in 

 the radiant bright spring 

 ■day. With the advent of 

 May our garden begins to 

 ■shower its floral treasures 

 lapon us. Statelier forms 

 and brighter colors, how- 

 ever, do not lessen our ad- 

 miration of the beauty of 

 the more tender bulbous 

 anemone- species from 

 southern Europe. Planted 

 early in fall on sheltered 

 spaces, under sufficient leaf- 

 covering to keep the ground 

 absolutely free from frost, 

 they have survived the win- 

 ter. The cover gradually 

 removed during the previ- 

 ous weeks, they now form 

 their tufts of ground foliage 

 and are ready to imfold 

 their buds. The attractive 

 flowers of the red, white 

 and blue A. coronaria varie- 

 ties, measuring about 2 

 inches across, are borne on 

 long erect stems. Those of 

 A. fulgens appear in bright 

 scarlet, their large petals 

 surrounding the nearly 

 black center. 



Single varieties are pre- 

 ferable to the double ones, 

 being a very choice material 

 ior filling vases. Both the 



Akemone vernaus 



Anemone j.\ponica queen charlotte 



coronaria and 

 fulgens anem- 

 ones will be 

 also found well 

 adapted to pot- 

 cvilture in a 

 sunny and well 

 ventilated green- 

 house, with 50 

 degrees average 

 t e m p e r ature. 

 The same is to 

 be said of the 

 very handsome 

 Irish St. Brigid 

 anemones, 

 which, like the 

 coronaria or 

 poppy wind- 

 flowers, prove 

 charming bor- 

 der plants, when 

 associated t o- 

 gether in 

 clumps. The 

 latest of the 

 vernal class to 

 flower is our native Anemone pennsylvanica, a very 

 effective species for naturalization throughout thinly 

 wooded sections of parks. In the north I found its 

 flowers snow-white, while in the middle Atlantic states 



they sometimes lack purity. 

 Not imtil after the last 

 liot midsummer waves are 

 past may we enjoy the in- 

 comparable charm of the 

 Japanese windflowers. The 

 heavy dew of cool nights 

 and the clear sunlight of 

 September days noticeably 

 influence the perfectness, 

 size and color of the flow- 

 ers. Grouped together in 

 sufficient numbers we again 

 witness the enhancing spec- 

 tacle of light-winged masses 

 of flowers gently swaying 

 under the touch of the 

 wandering breeze. Of the 

 standard varieties of Anem- 

 one Japonica in pure white 

 Japonica alba (Honorine 

 Jobert), Whirlwind and 

 Geante Blanche are the 

 best. Desirable tall grow- 

 ing pink sorts both for 

 bedding as well as the bor- 

 der are Queen Charlotte, 

 Ivriemhilde, Alice, Loreley 

 and rosea-superba, with the 

 lower growing semi-double 

 lavender pink Rosa Zwerg 

 as outer edge. Carmine 

 and magenta shades pre- 

 dominate in the flowers of 

 Prinz Heinrich, Diademe. 



