Native Plants

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Monday - March 29, 2010

From: Pflugerville, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Seeds and Seeding, Wildflowers
Title: Collecting seeds of Anemone berlandieri, windflower
Answered by: Nan Hampton and Minnette Marr

QUESTION:

The recent rainy weather has produced a small colony of what I have identified from your web site as Anemone berlandieri Pritzel (Texas Anemone) in my backyard. Is there a way to harvest these seeds for future use? I have placed small plastic bags over the fruiting bodies but I wonder if the plant will be hindered in making seeds by this process. Is there a better way?

ANSWER:

The Anemone berlandieri (windflower) is blooming everywhere around the Central Texas area right now so it shouldn't be difficult to collect the seeds. One thing you can do is to look for flowers that have already lost some of their achenes (the tiny dry fruit containing the seed). The apex (the tip) of the receptacle will be exposed if some of the achenes have already dispersed. The achenes remaining on the receptacle will be ripe and should easily strip off the receptacle. The plastic bags on the fruiting body shouldn't be a problem, but it would be better to keep the bag off the receptacle. We suggest using a surveyor's stake wire flag to support the bag so that it isn't resting on the fruiting body.

From the Image Gallery

Tenpetal anemone
Anemone berlandieri