2012 Peony 'Angel Cheeks' Best Performer - Week 6

Week 6 was another great week in the peony bloom season here in the South! It's been amazing how many peonies have been blooming and the number of blooms. Peony 'Angel Cheeks' was definitely the winner in my garden this week, and the cheeks on this peony were too cute to resist! This peony started blooming on April 22, and still has a few blooms left today, May 9th! The varied form of the double blooms and the variety of colors in each bloom make this plant very attractive. Each bloom is unique in form and color, and it's always a pleasant surprise! Peony 'Angel Cheeks' is also an American Peony Society Gold Medal winner from 2005, and this hard working and beautiful peony really earns its medal!

Peony 'Angel Cheeks'
Southern Peony Best Performer


Peony 'Angel Cheeks'
Southern Peony Best Performer

2012 Peony Blooms Late Season - Week 6

Wow, I think this is going to be the best late/very late season I've ever had in my garden. I actually have enough mature varieties to keep the blooms going a bit later this year. That and the weather has been much more cooperative this year. The rain has come only a day at a time, giving the blooms time to dry out after a shower. Peony 'Myra MacRae' has a lovely lavender tint to her pink double blossoms. Peony 'Solange' has a complex coloring with hints white and salmon in a pale pink very full double bloom. Peony 'Vivid Rose' has a nice medium pink shade with casual petals arranged in a symmetrical shape. Peony 'Walter Mains' has hot pink guard petals around central yellow tuft with sometimes small hot pink petaloids in the center. Nice!

Peony 'Myra MacRae'	Peony 'Solange'
Peony 'Vivid Rose'	Peony 'Walter Mains'

2012 Peony 'Bartzella' Best Performer - Week 5

To see the pictures from my favorite individual blooms from week 5, you can find them in my post 2012 Peony Blooms Late Mid - Week 5. My best performing peony plant as a whole was definitely Peony 'Bartzella'. She really outdid herself this year. Every year she has grown in stature, foliage, and blooms. There were so many blooms this year, the plant was laden! The color of the petals is such a bright yellow, and it really stands out in the garden, especially since yellow is a rare color in peonies. The bold yellow blooms are made possible by the plant's tree peony heritage. Peony 'Bartzella' is an intersectional peony, a cross between an herbaceous peony and the tree peony, Paeonia Lutea. Peony 'Bartzella' is also an American Peony Society Gold Medal winner from 2006.
Peony 'Bartzella'
Southern Peony Best Performer


Peony 'Bartzella'
Southern Peony Best Performer

2012 Peony Blooms Late Mid - Week 5

The blooms for week 5 have been awesome. The single and semi-double midseason blooms really shined in my garden this year. Peony 'Bartzella' is always beautiful and quite the showstopper with its bright yellow blooms. Peony 'Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt' always has such a delicate and feminine shape to her blooms, which is complemented by the delicate pink color of her petals. Peony 'Pink Princess' is a tall and proud peony with pale pink blooms that fade to white near the center and have beautiful spots on the petals that are so interesting to the eye. Peony 'Scarlet O'Hara' is the classic southern belle of a peony, with bright red petals surrounding a golden yellow center and pink tipped carpels.

Peony 'Bartzella'	Peony 'Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt
Peony 'Pink Princess'	Peony 'Scarlet O'Hara'

2012 Peony 'Do Tell' Best Performer - Week 4

If you want to see the pictures from my favorite individual blooms from week 4, you can find them in my post 2012 Peony Blooms Mid Season - Week 4 . As for my favorite overall performer for the bush as a whole for week 4, there is no contest. It is definitely Peony 'Do Tell'. This peony has a multitude of pink blooms with an interesting pink and white center of tiny wavy petals. It almost looks like a hairdo that Ke$ha would wear! The blooms open on different days. So they will usually last for a couple weeks. The plant is a consistent bloomer and grower year after year in this climate, multiplying steadily at a rapid pace. It seems to be very happy here in my southern climate. It definitely earns its 2004 American Peony Society Gold Medal every year in my garden!
Peony 'Do Tell'
Southern Peony Best Performer

2012 Peony Blooms Mid Season - Week 4

The double and bomb type peonies really made their debut this week in the Midseason of the peony bloom season, Week 4. With bright colors and giant blooms how can anyone resist? Peony 'Kansas' did really well this year for me. The hot pink blooms really stood out. Peony 'Many Happy Returns' has such a nice red color and form. Peony 'Red Charm' is an awesome bomb type peony and the most true red you'll find. Peony 'Rose Heart' bloomed for me for the 2nd time this year, and the bloom was so much larger with the characteristic pink heart (center).

Peony 'Kansas'	Peony 'Many Happy Returns'
Peony 'Red Charm'	Peony 'Rose Heart'

2012 Peony Blooms Best Performers - Weeks 1-3

I already posted pictures of my favorite peony blooms from Weeks 1-3 of the peony bloom season in my post 2012 Peony Blooms Very Early to Early Mid - Weeks 1-3. However I thought it might also be beneficial to post some of my favorite overall performers from Weeks 1-3 here in my Southern growing climate. The best two peony bushes overall were Peony 'Seraphim' and Peony 'Honor'. Peony 'Seraphim' is just so lovely and has a multitude of blossoms on tall stems with multiple blooms per stem. The bright white flowers just look so lovely and feminine and the foliage is very sturdy and a nice dark green color. Peony 'Honor' is a plant of much shorter stature, but no less lovely. The dainty pink blossoms are one to a stem, but with a staggered opening, which showcases the beautiful range in color of the petals as they open. The foliage also seems sturdy here, and the green is a bit lighter in color, a nice contrast with the pink blooms.
Peony 'Seraphim'
Southern Peony Best Performer


Peony 'Honor'
Southern Peony Best Performer