Eriocapitella hupehensis
# Eriocapitella hupehensis

Eriocapitella hupehensis, a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, is native to Asia. The specific epithet hupehensis, which means "from Hupeh (Hupei, Hubei) province, China", refers to a region where the species is known to occur. In Chinese, it is called dǎ pò wǎn huā huā (打破碗花花), which means "broken bowl flower".

## Description

Eriocapitella hupehensis is a perennial herbaceous plant with a rhizome-like root structure. It is a clump-forming plant with 3–5 basal leaves, each with a petiole 5 to 35 cm (2 to 14 in) long. The leaf blades are ternate with a central leaflet 4 to 10 cm (1.6 to 3.9 in) long and 3 to 10 cm (1.2 to 3.9 in) wide. The lateral leaflets are similar to but smaller than the central leaflet. The stem is 30 to 100 cm (12 to 39 in) long, occasionally up to 120 cm (47 in) long. A whorl of 3 leaves (technically bracts) wraps around the stem. The stem leaves are similar in appearance to the basal leaves but somewhat smaller. The inflorescence is a cyme with 2 or 3 branches and a primary flower stalk 3 to 10 cm (1.2 to 3.9 in) long. Each flower is approximately 5 cm (2.0 in) across. In its native habitat, the flower usually has 5 sepals (no petals) but cultivated plants have double flowers with around 20 sepals. The sepals may be purple, purple-red, pink or white. In the center of the flower, there are more than 100 pistils each 1.5 mm long, surrounded by prominent yellow stamens approximately 5 mm (0.2 in) long. The fruits are small ovoid achenes with straight styles.

## Taxonomy

Eriocapitella hupehensis was described by Maarten J. M. Christenhusz and James W. Byng in 2018. Like other members of genus Eriocapitella, E. hupehensis was formerly a member of genus Anemone. The basionym Anemone japonica var. hupehensis Lemoine was described in 1908.

## Distribution

Eriocapitella hupehensis is native to Asia, in the Eastern Himalaya region, East Asia, and Southeast Asia.

* Eastern Himalaya: Nepal, Assam (northeast India), Tibet
* East and Southeast Asia: China, Taiwan, Myanmar
   * Northwest China: Shaanxi
   * Central China: Hubei
   * East China: Jiangxi, Zhejiang
   * South China: Guangdong, Guangxi
   * Southwest China: Guizhou, Sichuan, Yunnan

The species was introduced into Czechoslovakia, Ecuador, and Germany.

## Ecology

Eriocapitella hupehensis along with four other taxa (E. × hybrida, E. japonica, E. tomentosa, and E. vitifolia) are known as fall-blooming anemones. In its native habitat, E. hupehensis flowers from July to October.

## Cultivation

Eriocapitella hupehensis and its cultivars are cultivated worldwide, especially in Asia, Europe, and South America, where naturalized populations are known to exist. In China, E. hupehensis has been cultivated since at least the 17th century, probably dating back to the Tang dynasty (618–907). Hundreds of years ago, a semi-double form of E. hupehensis escaped cultivation and spread across China to Japan and Korea. This descendant of E. hupehensis, now known as E. japonica, is a parent of the artificial hybrid E. × hybrida.

At the Chicago Botanic Garden, Rudy experimented with 26 cultivars of fall-blooming anemones over a 5-year period beginning in 1998. His experiments included three cultivars of E. hupehensis:

| Cultivar | Flower color | Flower form | Height | Width | Bloom period | Bloom length |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| E. hupehensis 'Hadspen Abundance' | pale purple | single | 27 in. | 40 in. | mid Sep-early Nov | 45.2 days |
| E. hupehensis 'Praecox' | pink | single | 50 in. | 33 in. | late Jul-early Oct | 51.8 days |
| E. hupehensis 'Superba' | lavender pink | semi-double | 26 in. | 29 in. | early Sep-early Nov | 47.2 days |

As of March 2020, the following cultivars have gained the Award of Garden Merit (AGM) from the Royal Horticultural Society:

* E. hupehensis 'Bowles's Pink'
* E. hupehensis 'Hadspen Abundance'

## Gallery

* Seeds
* Flower and unripe seedheads in a private garden
* Anemone hupehensis by A.J. Wendel, 1868
* Henri Fantin-Latour, Japanese Anemones, 1884
