2017 Intersectional Peony Blooms Week 2 Early

I can't believe the intersectional peonies are already blooming! My early intersectional peonies all started blooming in shades of pinks, lavenders, and purples. However that color intersectional peonies are famous for - that rich, golden yellow has not yet appeared. I suppose the yellow intersectionals tend to bloom a bit later in the intersectional season. Peony 'First Arrival' was the first intersectional to bloom in my garden this year, a fitting name for this early intersectional. Peony 'Hillary' has been just gorgeous this year. This plant has really settled in and taken off. Peony 'Sonoma Amethyst' and Peony 'Morning Lilac' are both Southern Peony Best Performers, and they are both living up to their reputations this year as well. If you haven't started your intersectional peony collection yet, now's the time. I can't say enough good things about them! :-)
Intersectional Peony 'First Arrival'

Intersectional Peony 'Hillary'

Intersectional Peony 'Sonoma Amethyst'

Intersectional Peony 'Morning Lilac'

2017 New Peony Seedling 'Pink Zebra'

Peony 'Pink Zebra'
Wow! What a surprise to find this interesting animal in my peony bed this week. This peony had quite an interesting pattern on it with light and dark pink stripes that extend all the way down the petal. I don't think I've seen anything quite like it. It kind of reminds me of a pink zebra! So for now, I have nicknamed it Peony 'Pink Zebra'. I will definitely be moving this one to my peony seedling test bed to keep a closer eye on it next year. I am wondering if it will keep the stripes next year.
Pink Striped Petal Herbaceous Peony
I'm also wondering if it will be as floriferous as its mother, an unknown white peony that is the most floriferous peony I've ever grown! It was sold to me as Peony 'Seraphim', but obviously it is not. The APS Cultivar Registry for 'Seraphim' clearly states "Less tall than Chalice, with flowers not so huge. Abundant bloomer. White single. Earlier than Chalice." This peony is definitely an abundant bloomer and a white single form peony. However this plant blooms about 10 days later than 'Chalice'. Whoever it is, I hope its babies will inherit that floriferousness that fills that plant like their mother. I will be curious to see how many blooms appear on Peony 'Pink Zebra' in the next few springs!
Unknown White Floriferous Peony
Peony 'Pink Zebra''s Mother

2017 Peony 'Lustrous' Best Performer - Week 2

I have loved this peony, Peony 'Lustrous', for years now. It is just so hard to get a photo of the plant with several blooms on it all at once! The buds usually open over a period of time instead of all at one time. So you don't get a plant full of blooms effect with this peony variety. However the upside of that is that you get to enjoy them bloom by bloom over a period of time. As you can see two of the flowers have already opened and faded in this photo, several are open, and there are 6 big fat buds on it still waiting to open! Peony 'Lustrous' was hybridized by A. P. Saunders and registered in 1942. It is one of the standout peonies in my Saunders peony garden. It is beautiful for it rare, true red coloring, its early season, and its very full, semi-double flowers when most other herbaceous peonies opening at this time are single petaled blooms. If you haven't yet added Peony 'Lustrous' to your early blooming peony collection, now's the time, so you too can enjoy these luscious red peony blooms!
Peony 'Lustrous'
Southern Peony Best Performer

Peony 'Lustrous'
Southern Peony Best Performer

2017 Peony Blooms Week 2 Early

It was another very colorful week this week for peonies. The early blooms are popping up, but the bushes are in need of some rain. We started the year short of rain in February, but we had a pretty good March. However April is shaping up to be much drier. I hope we get some rain soon! The peonies really need the moisture to keep up with their impressive stem and bud growth at this stage. If they get too dry, both stem and bud growth will be limited. Come on rain! I guess the good thing about not having much rain during this foliage growth period is a decided lack of botrytis blight - which is okay with me! :-)
Peony 'Raspberry Charm'

Peony 'Roy Pehrson's Best Yellow'

Peony 'Coral Fay'

Peony 'Skylark'

Peony 'Lavender'

Peony 'Grace Root'

2017 Questions - Peony 'Old Faithful' Slow to Increase

I received this question from Pauline in zone 5b:

"I have a quick question for you regarding Old Faithful, which you seem to grow. What is your increase of stems year over year?

"I planted Old Faithful in fall 2015, along with 14 other varieties of peonies. (Long story short: I've been apartment living in cities for many years and finally moved out to a house. I've always loved peonies and went a little crazy when I could finally grow them!) The first year Old Faithful had two stems and two flowers. This year there seems to be only three large "buds" emerging. I've looked all over and no one mentions that Old Faithful is slow to increase. It is mentioned regarding other cultivators (I.e. Henry Bockstoce). Old Faithful is in a raised bed of amended soil, spaced 3 feet from other peonies, and the other peonies have at least doubled stems year over year."

"I only ask as we are planning to move and I would like to divide and take the plants to our new home. I am hoping Old Faithful has enough eyes to divide. Thanks for your time on this!"


Peony 'Old Faithful' in 2017 with 2 Stems
I must say that I am quite disappointed with this peony plant right now, actually. The increase was great at first, but now it seems to be struggling. Also this plant is in one of my best beds in the yard. It has good access to sun, moisture, and is free from competition. I have grown this Peony 'Old Faithful' since 2008. The stem increase seemed to be good at first, 1 stem (2009), 3 stems (2010), 7 stems (2011), 9 stems (2012), and then it has been steadily declining ever since. I have tried giving it good compost and organic fertilizer since it has started declining, but it has not helped. The next year it went down to 7 stems (2013), 7 stems (2014), 5 stems (2015), and 3 stems (2016). This year it only has 2 stems (2017) on it. Sometimes it may pop up a late stem, but so far, there are only 2 stems on it this year. So I really can't say if your peony will be large enough to divide. If you want to keep it, you may need to just dig the whole thing up and take it with you. This plant has very thick, large stems and a great habit - which make it seem like it should be a great garden plant, but its recent steady decline has really disapointed me. :-(

2017 Intersectional Peony Hybridizing Failure

I don't think I need an expert opinion to see that this seedling looks like an herbaceous peony. That's too bad. It was so exciting when I first saw this baby pop up 2017 First Intersectional Hybrid Seedling Sprouts!, and was wondering what it might look like someday. I guess I can still wonder, but the results probably won't be what I was hoping for. Oh, well. It looks like it is time to get back to work. This year's hybridizing season is upon us. The peonies are starting to bloom, and its time to try to make some new crosses! If at first you don't succeed, try, try again! (until you do!). :-)
Intersectional Hybridizing Attempt Failed

2017 Garden Art Glass and Peony 'America'

Peony 'America' with Green Art Glass
I was surprised to see this Peony 'America' snuggled up to my green garden art glass and just beginning to open when I came home from work one day this week. The standout red flower and the shimmery green glass looked so good together, I couldn't help but snap a picture. The next day Peony 'America' was showing off its golden yellow center. This time the red leaved Japanese maple next to it begged to be included in the photo. :-) I love to have some "garden art" in the garden year round to give the garden color and interest. What kind of garden art do you have to create extra interest in your peony gardens?
Peony 'America' with Green Art Glass and Japanese Maple

2017 Peony Blooms Week 1 Very Early

Wow! I don't know if I've ever had such a colorful Week 1 Peony Bloom before! Many of the light colored, very early peony buds in shades of white, pale yellow, and pale pink were busted in another late cold snap we got. Despite my best efforts to save the buds earlier in the season, 2017 Protect Peonies from Super Cold Overnight Temps, the foliage was up much too high for me to attempt another intervention in late March. So the blooms in these pics made it through that last cold snap on their own. Most of these very early peony blooms, except for Peony 'Early Scout', came at the very end of the week, and were the first bloom to open on the plant. So more peony blooms to come! :-)
Peony 'Early Scout'


Peony 'Dark Chocolate'


Peony 'Coral Sunset'


Peony 'Coral Charm'


Peony 'Lustrous'


Tree Peony 'Shimadaijin 島大臣 (Island Minister)'

2017 Questions - Peonies for Hot Coastal Climates

I received this question from Charles in Zone 8b/9a:
"Your name was given me as a reliable source for peonies in the very deep South. My wife and I have always wanted to grow peonies but mistakenly thought that where we live in the sea islands of South Carolina would have too warm a winter to be successful. Recently, I have learned that there is at least one variety of double peony dark pink may do well here. That color, however, is not one that we particularly like.

We live on one of the sea islands of South Carolina, the island just above Hilton Head. Most gardening sites place us in zone 8b but the more reliable and studied research show our area of southeastern South Carolina, together with the area around Charleston to be in zone 9a. I guess the reason for this is that we are surrounded by water and receive the benefits of the Gulf Stream. Our summers can be hellish with high temperatures and high humidity. There's a section of our yard that receives full sun from dawn to about 1:00 where we would like to plant them.

I am hoping that you can suggest a couple of "never fail" double peonies in light pink, yellow, white or lavender that should do well for us. I also would like to be advised as to what sites on the web are good for beginners learning to plant peonies. Our soil here is sandy and perfectly neutral so I expect to have to amend the soil to make it possible to grow the plants we want. If you could be so good as to suggest a couple as well as a good source for purchasing them, we'd be grateful. Thank you."
Peonies for Hot Coastal Climates
Just because you have palm trees doesn't mean you can't grow peonies! (Actually a few select few palm trees will grow here in our zone 7b growing zone.) However not all peonies may grow successfully if you have palm trees. For your type of growing environment, I would recommend Intersectional Peonies. These peonies are a cross between tree peonies and herbaceous peonies. So you get some of the best attributes from both of them. You will get the tenacity, heat tolerance, and color range of a tree peony, and you will get a good mix of the foliage and flower habits from an herbaceous peony. All of this plus a plant that becomes well established more quickly than either a tree peony or herbaceous peony (which can take several years here).


Southern Peony Best Performers
As for how to grow peonies where you live, I would check out this article about 2016 Questions - Growing Peonies in South Carolina. Also you can find some good information about peonies that do well in the South on my Southern Peony Best Performers page. There are already several Intersectional (Itoh) peony selections on this page, including Peony 'Bartzella' (a yellow), Peony 'Keiko' (a pink), Peony 'Morning Lilac' (a fuschia pink/purple), Peony 'Sonoma Amethyst' (a lavender), and Peony 'Takara' (a pink with red center). The best white Intersectional Peony I would recommend would be Peony 'Cora Louise', a huge white flower with a dark purple center.


Southern Peony's 2017 Intersectional Peony
Catalog Price Comparison List
As for where to buy these intersectional peonies, a good place to start would be my 2017 Intersectional Peony Catalog Price Comparison List. This is a price comparison list for all of the peony growers who belong to the American Peony Society. While I cannot guarantee their plants, I have ordered from most of these growers, and have been happy with what they've sent me. Another source for Peony 'Bartzella' is Plant Delights Nursery, a local nursery here in NC. I know the Bartzella plants they sell are huge potted peony plants. This would give you a head start in getting your peony established vs. buying a root which is what most growers sell and ship in the fall. Buying a peony from a source that is closer to your own growing zone will also help your peony get established more quickly. Another grower that sells all of their Intersectional Peonies as potted plants is Klehm's Song Sparrow. Since these intersectional peony plants are potted, these vendors can ship them year round, which means you could get your plants in the ground now! Good luck!

2017 Hollingsworth Peonies Order

I couldn't help but notice this really cool Saunders hybrid peony (that I don't have) for sale in the Hollingsworth Peonies catalog this year. It is Peony 'Sanctus', and it seems to have really huge stamens. I don't think I've seen a peony quite like it before. The bright yellow stamens seem to cover over half the length of the pristine white petals, and the stigmas lend a pop of bright red in the center. Gorgeous! I also decided to pick up Peony 'Faithful Dream', one of the peonies on the 2017 Herbaceous Hot 100 Peony Catalog Price Comparison List. I've been wanting this peony for a while, and Hollingsworth Peonies seems to be the only APS Commercial Member offering it this year. Peony 'Faithful Dream' was hybridized by Tim Stanek and comes from a cross of Peony 'Old Faithful' x Peony 'Salmon Dream'.
2017 Hollingsworth Peonies Order

2017 First Peony Bloom of the Year - Unknown TP

First Peony Bloom of the Year in Bud
I must say that my first peony bloom of the year is a little underwhelming. Don't get me wrong, the color of the bloom is lovely. It's just a little different than I expected. For some reason I was expecting this to be the Tree Peony 'White Phoenix', which it definitely is not. I have another 'White Phoenix' Tree Peony that actually is white. However this one is a lovely shade of pale lavender. I am not really sure of its identity, but I don't think it really matters. I shall keep it anyway. :-)
First Peony Bloom of the Year - Unknown Tree Peony
Sometimes when you are expecting a certain flower color, and you plant the plant where you want that color bloom. So I may have to move this plant later, but for now it is fine. I like lavender a lot anyway, since purple is my favorite color. I hope all of you have a wonderful start to your peony season. What color (and variety if known) is your first peony bloom this year?
Unknown Lavender Tree Peony

2017 Questions - Reliable Source for Peony Seeds

I received this question from Mubarak in zone :

"I am looking for reliable source for peony seed for my home garden. While searching on internet I found your blog southernpeony.com. Thank you so much for all the information at one place. Please let me know where I can buy seed or can you share some seed with me. I will pay for the postage. Please help me in this regard."

American Peony Society Seed Distribution Sale
I would highly recommend the American Peony Society as the best (and most reliable) place to buy peony seeds. However you do need an APS membership to buy the seeds. One year's APS Membership fee is $25, but it may be worth it if you are buying lots of seeds. Also the seed list for this year was just posted last week, and there are lots of fabulous choices on it. A very talented hybridizer that passed away recently, Bill Seidl, donated all of his seeds to the American Peony Society. So their Seed Distribution Program has lots of rare, hand pollinated, choice seeds (many are limited to 1 pack per person) to choose from.

Also there is an American Peony Society Annual Convention & Show coming up in June of this year in Raleigh, NC. The APS seeds will be at the peony show for sale to the public (no APS membership necessary) and no shipping fee! I'm not sure how far you are from Raleigh, NC, but this will be a great show to see the myriad of peony varieties available, and if you have time, you may want to join APS and attend the whole convention. 😊 Hope to see you there!

2017 American Peony Society Convention