NWNARGS : Hepatica Study Group

Hepatica Study Group

Since our Northwestern Chapter was founded in1934, many members have been charmed by Hepatica and have grown and treasured these little flowers that bloom in the late winter.

In the fall of 2013 at our annual banquet, some good friends and members of the Northwestern Chapter of the North American Rock Garden Society (NWNARGS) who admired Hepatica decided to found our study group. The following spring, the first meeting was held, and since then we meet several times a year to talk about Hepatica.

The NWNARGS Hepatica study group is a mix of serious amateurs and horticultural and nursery professionals who get together to study and share information about growing, propagating, and breeding Hepatica in the Pacific Northwest. Our activities include meetings, show and tell, garden tours, and plant and seed exchanges. We share enthusiasm, experience, and knowledge among members, while focusing on studying and understanding each species and its hybrids. We are also interested in conservation, and are actively exploring how seed and vegetative propagation methods can help reduce some of the impact of climate change and increasing development on wild populations.

Semi Double Japanese Hepatica grown from seed.

Photo by Saori Cretin

Double Japanese Hepatica grown from seed.

Photo by Saori Cretin

Our group members also actively study Hepatica species from around the world. In Japan and more recently in Europe, enthusiasts and breeders have been selecting interesting forms and colors of their local hepatica species for horticultural interest. This is something that has yet to be done as much in the US with the North American species of sharp-lobed and round-lobed hepatica, and so one of our interests is to explore these species (H. acutiloba and H. americana) in more depth, especially since there are many interesting examples in nature to be found.

Here are some pictures of the wonderful Hepatica grown by our members as well as some scenes of our study group meetings. We welcome all NWNARGS chapter members to join us!

Our members are informed of details of individual meetings and events as their dates approach though email. If you are interested in more information, please contact Saori.