Northwest Blooms · Groundcovers
Anemone nemorosa 'Allenii'
Allenii Wood Anemone
- Family
- Ranunculaceae
- Height
- 6 to 10 in
- Width
- 6 to 10 in
- Flower color
- Soft periwinkle blue blooms with layered, prominent yellow sepals
- Foliage color
- Medium green, deeply divided fern-like leaves that form a low carpet
- Bloom time
- Early to mid spring
- Light
- Part shade
- Water
- Moderate moisture
- Maintenance
- Low; remove spent flowers to tidy appearance
- Growing zone
- USDA zones 4 to 8
- Wildlife
- Bees and other early-season pollinators
About this plant
Anemone nemorosa 'Allenii' bears soft lavender-blue flowers with a pale center, opening fully in cool spring weather. Blooms appear in early to mid spring, floating above whorls of deeply divided green foliage. The flowers follow the sun, closing in shade or evening, while the foliage forms a low, carpeted layer that emerges early and retreats quietly as summer approaches.
Selected in the British Isles in the early twentieth century, this cultivar reflects classic woodland heritage. It is well suited to deciduous woodland gardens, shaded borders, and naturalized drifts, where spreading rhizomes create sweeping colonies. 'Allenii' pairs with bulbs and spring ephemerals, before trees leaf out.
Works well in
Pollinator Gardens · Woodland Gardens · Borders · Rock Gardens
Companion plants
Hellebores · Epimediums · Brunneras · Hostas · Ferns · Pulmonarias
Design tip
Plant in sweeping drifts beneath deciduous trees where the soft blue flowers create a peaceful woodland display each spring. Allow colonies to expand gradually, forming broad ribbons of color that weave naturally through shaded garden spaces over time.
