Cutleaf anemone (Anemone multifida) is a perennial herb in the buttercup family (along with pasqueflowers at higher elevations.   They tend to clump with a thick woody base and they usually have multiple stems.   The lower leaves are hairy, segmented and have incised leaflets.

Long, soft, hairy stems are topped with white, yellowish, or pinkish sepals, often tinged with purple, red, or blue.   The center of the flower can have up to 80 stamens.    Cutleaf anemones are quite variable and we sometimes wonder which species we have encountered.  After flowering, achenes form with woolly seeds.

All photos in this post were taken by the author while out hiking.    Click an image for a lightbox view.

We encounter cutleaf anemones in the grasslands, in open forest glades, and on dry warm ridges in the period from May to July (appearances coincide with lower to higher elevations).