Much like ranunculus, I can’t help but feel like anemone coronaria is yet another flower that can lead to quite the frustration for home gardeners and amateur flower farmers. The first time I planted anemones was a complete failure. I planted in the spring, and I’m fairly certain that the bulbs just sat there and rotted away. Now, with a little more knowledge, I’m able to have have much greater success with these plants.
The first thing I need to do is to soak the anemone corms. As you can see by the photo, the corms have no uniform shape or size. I first like to soak the corms for about 4-6 hours in water. I’ve heard that some growers choose to aerate the water, but I’ve had success each way. Anemones do have the tendency to rot quite easily (even more so than ranunculus), so I have to make sure that I don’t forget about them.
Once a few hours have passed, it’s time to remove the corms from the water and grab a seed tray. I fill the seed tray with potting mix and then arrange the corms on top of the soil. Since there technically is no “up” or “down” with these corms, I just arrange them in whatever way fits.
After I lay the corms in the soil, I cover them very lightly with even more potting soil. Ideally, I use just enough soil to cover the corms and make sure that they’re coming into good contact with the soil. After I’ve done this, I move the seed tray into the garden for the fall.
Here in my zone 6/7 garden, I like to start anemone corms at the beginner of October. October temperatures are perfect to trigger the growth of these plants. Ideally, temperatures should range between 60-70F during the day and 40-50F at night. I generally start seeing the first signs of growth within 7-10 days. After the plants emerge, I move them into their final destination in the hoophouse. A hoophouse or low tunnel is required, as these plants will not survive in my garden without additional protection.
Have you grown anemone coronaria before? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below! I hope you’re having a wonderful day!
