Welcome ! I’ve compiled instructions on how to grow your own ranunculus & anemones in your own gardens. If you still need corms- check out our online shop- otherwise read on for how to wake these dormant roots up and get them started!
How to Grow Ranunculus & Anemones in your Garden
Ranunculus and anemones have become a popular spring fixture in the flower farming world. Everyone loves these fluffy many-petaled blooms. Now you can try growing these in your own home gardens and be rewarded in the spring. They take a bit more work than your average spring bulb/corm- but they are well worth the extra time!
Ranunculus and anemones are shipped in a dry, dormant state. They are truly dormant, with zero need for special care while in this state. The corms can be stored dry and at room temperature for several months-we have even stored for a year on our own. Sometimes in transit, small solo legs can break off. This is normal and happens to us as well. Solo legs do not sprout-you can discard them.
Your growing zone and winter temps will dictate when you are able to plant your corms. In VERY warm zones, you should probably plant corms in early fall for a late winter/very early spring bloom. Very COLD zones will want to keep them til late winter/early spring to plant to avoid a deep freeze OR plant in late fall and cover with protection. For winter protection, we use Agribon frost cloth over thin metal veggie hoops to create a mini tunnel - you can purchase on Amazon or through a local farm store. Planted corms that are growing cannot sustain a hard freeze and will be nipped back under 30- so you need to protect the soil if there is still a risk of severe cold. Corms like a long slow root cycle growth period at cooler soil temperatures, so knowing your soil temps and how that relates to your months is a benefit of growing these beautiful divas.
Prepare the corms by soaking them for 3-4 hours in room temp water. The corms will become plump- you will see a big difference in ranunculus but not much visual difference for anemones. It is important to maintain oxygen levels in the water. We don’t do this with any fancy equipment, we just change the water out every hour or two and refill with fresh water- not letting it stagnate.
Once the corms are soaked, we pre-sprout. This gives them a head start and you can clearly see what will be growing when you put it in the ground. However, this is NOT required. If you do NOT want to pre-sprout, skip to step 6. Pre-sprout in a shallow tray or 1020 planting tray. Add a layer of soil, spread out the corms in a single layer, and then cover lightly with soil on top- not too heavily. The soil should be almost dry or barely misted. You can space the corms quite close as this is temporary. Plant ranunculus with their tuberous “fingers” pointing down, and anemones with their pointed end down. Cover the tray with a plastic wrap or a plastic dome. Do NOT water these yet. Corms can rot rather easily. If you do NOT cover your tray, then you will have to mist the soil. The perfect balance of wet corm and dryish soil is usually enough to get them to sprout.
Store the tray in a cool place, around 10 Celcius/50 Fahrenheit (we use our basement), for 12-15 days on avg. During this time the corms will develop roots and begin to sprout up top.. You will see the sprouts begin as a white dot. At this point you can mist or lightly water the tray if you feel it is too dry. It is important to not leave them too wet or too dry. Corms have a thin margin for error on wet/dry - similar to dahlia tubers. If you do not see sprouting within 15 days, check the corm- if it feels too dry, re soak and start the process over. Once sprouted, corms can be planted out into the ground at 2-3” deep, and 6-8” apart. They also do well in containers because the plant size is not large- and does not take a lot of watering.
Select a planting site with full sun and well draining soil. Thoroughly incorporate a generous 3-4” layer of compost and your favorite organic fertilizer into the soil. For best visual impact, plant corms in groupings. The plants themselves do not get large-so don’t space too far. If you’re planning to grow for the purpose of cutting, then long, narrow rows are most efficient.
They offer a vase life of up to 10 days. To harvest: The sepals should all be down and the bud will be fluffy and fat. If the bud feels hard in the center, as if there were a marble in the middle, allow the bud to develop another day or two before harvesting. You can also harvest ranunculus after they have opened, but not ‘blown’ open and exposed their stamens. Some wait until they have opened and closed a few times for maximum fluff. Anemones can be harvested once the flowers have opened. Anemones also benefit from cutting every short first/second bloom stem to encourage longer stem length. The more you cut, the more new buds open. Both can bloom anywhere from 4-6 weeks in the garden depending on your zone (hotter zones will have a shorter blooming time) and begin to go dormant once temperatures regularly reach more than 70 degrees. They do not like heat at all and will shut down. This is why it’s important to give them a cool root growth time period before the heat of spring hits them in warm climates.
ENJOY the beauty and the knowledge that you grew these yourself! If you post online, be sure to tag us @thefarmatoxford so that we can see what you have grown with your own two hands. Thank you for growing these beautiful plants alongside us!