Double Hepatica acutiloba has an interesting way of blooming

Here is a double Hepatica acutiloba (sharp-lobed Hepatica) just starting to unfold its sepals. Although many double forms have been found in the wild, currently only a very few clones are in cultivation.

If you look closely at this H. acutiloba, you can see some short flattened stamens are hidden under the longer mutated sepal-like pistils. This form is called Sene-zaki (千重咲き) which literally means ‘thousand-layered flower’.

You can see short, fattened mutant stamens (hera-shibe) underneath the mutated sepal-like pistils.

Same flower from a different angle.

When the flowers fully open, the mutated pistils still have faint green and brownish colors.

The green and brownish colors fade as the flowers age, and turn pure white.

The double flowers are long-lasting, and new leaves are starting to develop.