Hepatica Nobilis
They are so alike to look at that they were once called Anemone hepatica, until botanists finally segregated them. Both enjoy cool conditions, friable soil and dappled shade, and both flower early in the year. However hepaticas usually precede wood anemones by three to four weeks or more. As a result, their three- or five-lobed leaves can suffer weather damage so it’s often better to cut the foliage away in midwinter and allow the simply shaped flowers to shine on their own.
The most commonly grown garden forms are derived from H. nobilis a very hardy hepatica found in deciduous woodland throughout Europe, the Balkans, southern Scandinavia and Russia. It even occurs inside the Arctic circle, so this species is very hardy. The six-petalled flowers come in blue, white or pink and the single-flowered forms often seed around in woodland gardens.
Specialists (like Ashwood Nurseries) also offer a wide range of hepaticas from other parts of the world. There are twelve species and all grow on woodland slopes where leaf mould gathers. They include some excellent garden plants.
Hepatica transylvanica
This larger, more robust species from the Carpathian Mountains is very easy in dappled shade in a variety of soils. Most forms have blue flowers, although there are pink and white forms as well. This much larger taller plant holds the flowers well above the foliage, so it looks very like a wood anemone. The foliage is larger and a lighter green and this plant can tolerate dryish shade.
Good forms include
'Elison Spence'
An anemone-centred double deep-blue.
'Loddon Blue'
A pale-blue form raised at Thomas Carlisle’s Loddon Nurseries at Twyford in Buckinghamshire over fifty years ago.
Transylvanica x Nobilis Hybrids
H. x media 'Ballardii' (1917)
A large-flowered sky-blue hybrid bred by Ernest Ballard the husband of hellebore breeder Helen Ballard. Slow to bulk up.
H. x media 'Harvington Beauty' (named in 1995)
This much stronger, blue-flowered hybrid was named 'Harvington Beauty' after the Worcestershire village where it was found growing, often in dry conditions. Although no one knows for certain where it came from, Helen Ballard’s daughter once lived in this village so it might be another Ballard hybrid.
Japanese hepaticas (H. japonica) for the enthusiast
The Japanese have their own species (H. japonica) and sharp-eyed collectors have found many different forms, colours and variations over four centuries or more of collecting. The Niigata Prefecture of Honshu, famous for its skiing, has a diverse range of hepaticas growing on the wooded mountain slopes. Doubles and anemone- centred forms have been found and named. This prefecture holds hepatica shows, but these shows are also popular in Tokyo too. The highly-prized plants are grown in glazed containers and almost worshipped by their owners who call them ‘Yukiwariso’ - the breaking snow plant.
In recent years, John Massey of Ashwood Nurseries has introduced some forms via Japan. Some are acid-loving plants, but others grow on sandstone. They are slow to multiply and therefore very expensive to buy, so these are collector’s plants rather than garden stalwarts. Some cost over a hundred pounds, so they have been slow to catch on here so far.
Other Asian hepaticas for the garden
Hepatica maxima
One of the best garden forms is a large, evergreen hepatica from Korea with green-eyed, ivory-white flowers and jade-green foliage. It flowers in February and will grow under deciduous shrubs. The large leaves are thickly textured with fine hairs round the edge so it’s a handsome foliage plant. Although Ashwood Nurseries recommend a greenhouse for overwintering mine has survived three extreme winters in my high, cold garden.
Hepaticas in pots
Many gardeners prefer to grow hepaticas in pots in an alpine house because their foliage is protected from wintry weather.
John Massey’s tips
- Use clay pots and equal amounts of John Innes no 2, perlite and leaf mould.
- Repot or divide every year, just after flowering.
- Shake off the old compost and trim any long roots by a third.
- Tease larger plants apart at this stage.
- Place the crowns on the soil surface.
- Keep the compost mixture airy and light and firm gently.
- Water well and keep the plants well watered in spring and then ease off the watering. Do not allow the pots to dry out completely. Morning watering is best.
- Feed in spring and autumn.
- Shade your greenhouse immediately after flowering so that three quarters is covered. Remove in October.
Sowing hepatica seeds
- Ashwood Nurseries sell hepatica seed - or you can also collect your own in early summer.
- Collect seeds in summer when ripe and sow straight away using seed sowing compost.
- Most seedlings germinate in the following spring and they can be pricked out in the autumn into individual pots.
Grow with
Hepatica nobilis is diminutive and short, so place it where it can be seen, at the front of a woodland garden or under deciduous shrubs. Use it with wood anemones, hellebores, snowdrops and ferns in areas where leafy shade occurs in summer.
Where to buy
Edrom Nurseries - www.edrom-nurseries.co.uk (the largest selection of Japanese hepaticas)
Ashwood Nurseries - www.ashwood-nurseries.co.uk