Published by Brian Wagner on 11/5/25 in “Growing Flowers from Seed.”
Eriocapitella hupehensis (commonly called Japanese Anemone) was previously classified as Anemone hupehensis. Japanese Anemone is either hated or loved by gardeners. Personally, I love them. But they do have a strong underground spreading habit.
Japanese Anemone have basal leaves and throw up long stems with dainty flowers in late summer into early autumn. Just when you think the fun flower season is over, Japanese Anemone seem to pop out of nowhere. Hardy to Zone 4, these beautiful thugs spread through underground rhizomes. Propagating them vegetatively is very easy – you can dig up pieces of a root, chop it up, and just bury them again in places you want them to grow. Chances are you’ll get more plants.
You might be surprised to learn that they’re native to eastern China, not really Japan. In their native geography they thrive at the forest edge – i.e., along woodland margins, streambanks, and shaded thickets, where soils are moist and humus-rich. They are also lovers of all things wet – and will perform extra well if the soil is consistently moist. They will even tolerate seasonal flooding with a smile on their faces.
The pure joy of these flowers is their appearance in September when everything else is fading, and especially given their tolerance of part shade, they have a special place in my own garden.
Growing from Seed
I have grown these from seed successfully, but I have also failed many times – likely on account of seed being dead. Like most plants in the Ranunculaceae family, seeds are not long lived – and they must be harvested fresh and sown within 6 to 8 months. You can harvest seeds right now if they’re in your neighbourhood – and you can just grab the seed heads and pop them in a paper bag to dry out. Seeds can be a bit tricky to remove from the seed fluff, but they’ll still germinate even if they’re among the fluff.
Seeds are not well researched, but they’re suspected to have a non-deep complex morphophysiological dormancy (MPD) – meaning they have immature embryos which grow at cold temperatures before they germinate in cool conditions.
The best success I’ve had in propagating these was to use outdoor cold stratification from November to January where I live (Zone 9b, Victoria BC Canada) – and when temperatures were around the freezing mark at night, with around 7C during the day. Oscillating temperatures are suspected to play an important environmental cue in triggering germination.
To propagate from seed, it is suggested that you cold stratify the seeds by placing them in a moist paper towel – and place this inside a thin ziplock bag. Keep the bag open to let oxygen in. Place this in the fridge at night, and take out of the fridge during the day – keeping it somewhere modestly cool during the day. These oscillating temperatures (also called alternating temperatures) are thought to play an important role. This may sound like a chore, but the result will be worth it. After a few months of doing this, seeds should begin to germinate. Check every other week for signs of germination. Do not put in the freezer, though. When they’re out during the day, keep away from super bright light – but make sure they experience ambient daylight in some way.
Once seeds germinate, carefully place them on top of moist soil. Use a shallow container with holes in the bottom. The soil should be an inch or two thick, not much more. The little seedlings will put down roots and they will need to stretch down to find water. This is very helpful with very small seeds (which produce small seedlings).
These are going to be slow growers. They’re slow in the garden, and they’re slow to grow into plants. They have true leaves around Day 60, and by Day 90 they will want to be potted up to 2” cells/pots. They might need 90-120 days before they’re ready to be planted outside.