Japanese plants – Japonica Plants Nursery

A new National Collection of Heloniopsis and Ypsilandra

I was delighted to be awarded a new National Collection of Heloniopsis and Ypsilandra in November 2023. The collection contains eleven species plus five cultivars and forms – all that are currently available in the U.K. (There is a variegated form of Heloniopsis orientalis, not available here at present, which I would love to get my hands on!) They are all in propagation and I hope to be able to offer small numbers of most forms for sale in the next few years.

Heloniopsis and Ypsilandra are two very closely related genera of evergreen woodland perennials from East Asia – so closely related that some authorities place them in a single genus, Helonias. They belong to the Melanthiacaea family, together with more well-known plants such as Trillium and Paris.

Ypsilandra contains about 5 species and Heloniopsis about 7. They are quite uncommon and not all species are in cultivation in the U.K. The most commonly available is Ypsilandra thibetica. They all have low rosettes of strap-like leaves and produce flower spikes of nodding, tubular flowers in shades of white, pink, and lilac, in late winter into early spring.

*Heloniopsis orientalis* (syn. *H. japonica*)

Heloniopsis are native to China, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea. Their common name is Oriental Swamp Pink or Japanese Hyacinth, and their name in Japanese is Shoujou Hakama (Shoujou is a red-haired, sake-drinking spirit, and Hakama are the traditional Japanese wide trousers). They require a reliably moist, humus rich soil in at least partial shade. It is a good idea to plant the rosette at a slight angle to allow water to run off and avoid rotting.

*Ypsilandra yunnanensis var. fansipanensis*

Ypsilandra are native to China, Myanmar and Thailand. They require similar growing conditions to Heloniopsis but will tolerate slightly drier conditions, which Heloniopsis absolutely will not. They flower very early – often in February – and have lightly scented white flowers with unusual pale blue anthers. The flowers fade to a coppery pink as they age. They are used in Chinese medicine to stop bleeding.

*Heloniopsis orientalis* producing plantlets at the leaf tips.

Both Ypsilandra and Heloniopsis can be rather reluctant to produce many seeds, but can be propagated, carefully, by division in spring. However, they can be propagated more reliably by leaf cuttings. Last year’s leaves are detached and placed in trays with both ends of the leaf inserted in a slightly damp growing medium. The trays are then placed in indirect light and kept warm. Plantlets may be produced at either end, and sometimes along the central vein. They take three years or so to reach flowering size. Heloniopsis orientalis naturally produces these plantlets where the tips of its leaves touch the soil, and in fact this is its main method of reproduction in its native habitat.

Though uncommon, they are great garden plants and worth seeking out, providing delicate colour at a time of year when every flower is especially valuable. I particularly recommend Ypsilandra thibetica, Heloniopsis orientalis, and Heloniopsis tubiflora ‘Temple Blue’.

Plant profile: Anemonopsis macrophylla

Anemonopsis macrophylla, the false anemone, is a herbaceous perennial in the Ranunculaceae family. It’s also one of the most exquisite flowers you can grow in the shade. In late summer, the nodding lilac and white flowers float above the clump of jagged-edged foliage like miniature upturned lotuses sculpted out of wax.

It is this resemblance which gives the plant its Japanese name, rengeshoma, lotus-flowered Actaea (shoma is Actaea, and renge is lotus). If you add ‘ki’, gold, you get another gorgeous Japanese endemic, Kirengeshoma palmata.

Anemonopsis macrophylla is found in the wild only in a few places on Honshu, the main island of Japan. It grows in the woodlands of the central mountains, and in the garden likes similar sheltered conditions. It needs shade and a good humus rich soil, and will not tolerate drying out. It’s also a good idea to protect it from slugs. ‘Slug Gone’ wool pellets work well for me and are non-toxic as well as good for the soil. Some authors suggest that it benefits from a slightly raised planting position. Overall, unless you are blessed with the exact conditions it prefers, sadly rare in the U.K., it is a plant that definitely requires a little extra effort to grow well.

There is also a white form of Anemonopsis macrophylla, sometimes sold under the name ‘White Swan’, and a double form, ‘Flore plena’. Though lovely, sought-after, and according expensive, neither of these beat the elegance of the straight species, in my opinion. In Japan, there is also a form with variegated leaves and one with a dark petiole (‘Aojiku’, a very desirable feature in Japanese horticulture). I have had, as yet, no success with these from imported seed.

Plant profile: Maianthemum japonicum

Maianthemum is a genus of rhizomatous perennials, widely distributed across Asia, Europe, North and Central America. Maianthemum japonicum, formerly Smilacina japonica, is native to Japan, China, Korea and the far east of Russia. Its common name is Japanese False Solomon’s Seal, as the genus is closely related to Polygonatum.

Maianthemum japonicum has arching stems to about 12-18”, 30-45cm, with a panicle of many tiny starlike white flowers at the tip of the stem in May and June. These are followed by shiny red berries in autumn. It prefers woodland conditions: humus rich soil in partial shade, not too dry. In its native habitat it grows in slightly damp montane forests. Propagation is by division of the creeping rhizomes in spring.

As with many native Japanese plants, a number of variegated varieties have been selected over the years.

Maianthemum derives its name from the Greek for ‘May Flower’. The Japanese name, ユキザサ, literally ‘snow bamboo’ derives from the white flowers and leaves reminiscent of Sasa bamboo leaves. The new shoots are harvested and eaten as a wild vegetable in Japan, and when boiled are said to taste of adzuki beans, giving it the common name of ‘Red Bean Greens’.