ANEMONE, Let. iiife-mo'nr.-; Engl. i-nan'o ne ((:k. the wind-flower, from enemas, wind), or WIND-FLOWER. A genus of plants of the order Ranunculaceme, having an involncre of three divided leaves, more or less remote from the flower: a petaloid ealyx, scarcely distinguishable from the corolla, and soft, woolly achenia (see AcnENE), which in some species have tails. The name is said to be derived from the fact that many of the species prefer very exposed situations. The species num ber about eighty-five, and are generally beauti ful. .;%lost of them flower early in spring. They are natives of temperate and cold climates, chief ly of the northern hemisphere. One species, Anemone quinquefolia, the Wood Anemone, is a common native of all parts of Great Britain and eastern North America, and its white flowers, externally tinged with purple, are an ornament of ninny a woodland scene and mountain pasture in April and May. Another species, Anemone polsatilla. or Pulsatill« vulgaris. the Pasque flower, adorns chalky pastures in some parts of England at the same season. Its flowers are purple and externally silky. patens nntialiona, or l'ulsatilla hirsulissima, is called the American Pasque flower, and resembles the European species. The Garden Anemone is a favorite florist's flower: the varieties are very numerous, and whole works have been published tin them and their cultivation, which is most ex tensively carried on in Holland and has pre /ailed from a very early period. It is generally supposed that all these varieties have originated from two species, Anemone coronaria and Anem one ho•tensis, or stellate. Both are natives of the
Levant: the latter is found also in Italy and the south of Franee. By enItivation, the size of the flower is increased, its form and colors are mod ified, and many of the stamens are often changed into small petals forming a doubled flower. The cultivation of the anemone requires great atten tion, the plant preferring light soil. The root, which consists of clustered timbers, is taken up af ter flowering. The plant is propagated by parting the roots or by seed. In the latter way new va rieties are obtained. Seedling plants do not flow er till the second or third year. Besides the species which have been named, others oc casionally appear as ornaments of our flower gardens. Anemone Apennine and Anemone pra tensis have beautiful blue flowers. They are both natives of the south of Europe. Anemone Ja ponica, a most beautiful species. has been in troduced from Japan. A number of species are common in the United States, among them Anemone quinquefolia. Anemone Caroliniana, Anemone Canadensis. and Anemone narcissiflora in mountainous regions. The species of this genus are characterized by the acridity prevalent in the natural order to which they belong, the rhizomes of Anemone nemorosa and others hav ing been reeommended in cases of obstinate rheu matism and in tmenia.