2012 Peony Blooms Very Late - Week 7

This has definitely been one of the longest peony blooms seasons I've ever had. I think the weather really helped or cooperated with the peonies this year. It warmed up rather early in the spring with no late frost and it's been a temperate spring so far. It hasn't really jumped straight from winter into the 90s like it usually does! :) I think the only complaint I have with many of the late season peonies is they seem to have floppy stems so their flowers really need staking! Peony 'Kelway's Glorious' has huge symmetrical white blooms. Peony 'Moonstone' was a real star in my garden this year with beautiful pink flowers that seem resistant to bud blast and bud rot. Peony 'Uncle Tom' has a deep red color that is hard to find. Peony 'Yellow Crown' has so many bright yellow petals that it is a real treasure.

Peony 'Kelway's Glorious'	Peony 'Moonstone'
Peony 'Uncle Tom'	Peony 'Yellow Crown'

2012 American Peony Society Convention Registration

OMG! I am so excited!!! I just booked my trip for the 2012 American Peony Society Convention. So if you're going too, please say hello to me. I'd love to meet you! The excitement is almost overwhelming! I can't wait to see all the beautiful peonies, pick the brains of the hybridizers, chat with the convention attendees, find out which peonies are going to be selected for the Gold Medal and Award of Landscape Merit. And who could forget about the Best in Show? This is going to be awesome! Plus I've never been to Nebraska, and it sounds like they've got some interesting sights for us to check out on the tour - Joslyn Castle and the Sass Memorial Iris and Peony Garden at Lauritzen Gardens in Mahoney State Park. If you've never been before and are interested, you should come. It's definitely a peony lover's vacation! I can't wait!

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