Common Name:

General Information

Anemone vitifolia is a herbaceous, perennial plant producing a 2 - 5 basal leaves 20 - 40cm tall, exceptionally to 60cm, and 1 - 3 flowering stems 50 - 80cm tall. The plant spreads at the roots to form clumps[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine, pesticide and tinder, It is grown as an ornamental in gardens.

Known Hazards

All parts of this plant contain protoanemonin, an irritating acrid oil that is an enzymatic breakdown product of the glycoside ranunculin. While protoanemonin can cause severe topical and gastrointestinal irritation, it is unstable and changes into harmless anemonin when plants are dried or heated[, , , , ]. The plant is toxic to maggots[].

Botanical References

,

Range

E. Asia - southwest China, northern India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar

Habitat

Damp open woodland and amongst shrubs; at elevations from 1,300 - 3,000 metres[, , ]. Sparse woods, grassy slopes, streamsides; at elevations from 1,200 - 2,700 metres in southwest China[].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	0.60 m
Pollinators	Bees, Flies, Self
Self-fertile	Yes
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Plants are hardy to at least -20°c[].
Succeeds in ordinary garden soil but prefers a rich sandy loam[]. Requires a moist fertile soil in dappled shade[].
A very ornamental plant[], it grows well in a woodland garden[]. Plants can be far spreading by means of underground stolons[].
Plants seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits[].
A greedy plant, inhibiting the growth of nearby plants, especially legumes[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

The fresh root is antirheumatic and vermifuge[]. The juice from the roots is taken internally in the treatment of dysentery[].
Applied topically, the root juice is used to relieve the pain of aching teeth and is applied to the forehead to relieve headaches[, ]. A paste made from the roots is used externally to treat scabies[].

The leaves are powdered and rubbed into the scalp to treat head lice[].

Other Uses

Woolly hairs from the achenes are used as a tinder[, ].

The root has insecticidal properties[].

Propagation

Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe in the summer[]. Surface sow or only just cover the seed and keep the soil moist. Sow stored seed as soon as possible in late winter or early spring. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 6 months at 20°c[]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on for at least their first year in a lightly shaded place in a greenhouse. When large enough, plant them out into their permanent positions in the spring.
Division in early spring just before active growth commences.
Root cuttings[].