2013 Chinese Tree Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade')

Chinese Tree Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade') on Ebay
Well I got my first green and growing Chinese tree peony variety this week, and yes, I bought it on Ebay. I know, I know. Ebay is not necessarily the best source for peonies. However I do consider it to be a step above Gilbert H. Wild, who sends lots of mislabled plants, and several steps above Dutch Bulbs or Spring Hill Nursery, which import dry stick like material they call tree peonies. Also to that end, tree peonies are quite expensive elsewhere, and to quote a seller of US grown tree peonies on Ebay,"shipping only for a dry stick from China is $29, and the chance of survival for those plants was 20% in my hand". I was even reading last night in my copy of the First Edition of the Manual of the American Peony Society, that in the 1800s the Chinese tree peony sellers would often cut the roots of the tree peonies or scald the seeds they sold to prevent them from growing. I wonder if that was to increase their future business or, as the author of the APS Manual article surmised, to keep their best varieties to themselves. Let's hope things have changed since the 1800s and sellers don't do that nowadays. I guess I'll find out in the spring when I check to see if any of my Suffruticosa Tree Peony Seeds from China sprout!

Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade') in Shipping Bag	Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade') Unwrapped

Anyway I got this tree peony from an Ebay seller in New York, that grafts and grows tree peonies himself, and the plant looks very nice for the price. It looks nice even for a much higher sum. I've even paid more for one of those dry stick-like tree peonies from a generic garden catalog only to have it die shortly thereafter. This one looks very sturdy and has lots of nice roots on it. The seller said it should bloom this coming spring or the next. I'm hoping for the one coming up!
Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade') Stem Root Junction


Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade') in Planting Hole
As you can see I planted this tree peony several inches below the soil. I actually planted it at least an inch deeper than the original grower had it planted (which you can see by the moisture mark on the plant's stems). This is to encourage the tree peony to continue to develop roots of its own (which would sprout off of the portion of the tree peony stem that is underground). So the more of the stem that is underground, the more surface area capable of developing roots. I also watered this one before I mulched it. I usually mulch it before I water, but since I was putting so much water on it (hoping to keep it moist), I wanted to make sure the water didn't run out of the planting hole. If you'd like more tips on planting tree peonies, check out this guide on How to Plant a Tree Peony.
Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade') Planted


Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade') Watered


Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade') Mulched

2013 New Tree Peony Moon Garden

I finally got all of the New Dirt for Tree Peony Garden raked out. Now I've also added a good layer of pulverized dolomitic limestone on top. This will help reduce the soil Ph in this garden since I've seen moss try to grow in this area. So now as the tree peonies come in for planting, I'll cultivate the soil, mix in the limestone and a handful of organic fertilizer, and make a nice planting hole for each tree peony. I got the first one planted on Wednesday. It is Chinese Tree Peony 'Xiang Yu' ('Fragrant Jade'), which is supposed to a vigorous growing, white double flowered tree peony from China. I am excited to see whether any of the tree peonies that are to be planted will bloom next or take some time to settle in and establish themselves before sending out a blossom.
New Dirt for New Tree Peony Garden

2013 Fall Peony Planting Season

It's that time of year!!! The fall peony planting season has come! I got my first shipment of fall peonies today. It was from Hollingsworth Peony Nursery. It seems like it came about a month earlier than any of the other orders I've ever placed with them. I ordered a Peony 'Lafayette Escadrille' and a Peony 'Pehrson's Violet Frisbee' from them. I have been wanting 'Pehrson's Violet Frisbee' since 2007. That was the last time I remember Hollingsworth offering it, but it was sold out by the time I tried to order it. So when I saw them offering it again this year, I quickly ordered it. I have been wanting 'Lafayette Escadrille', an intersectional peony, since last year when I ordered it from Song Sparrow, but then I got a notice that they couldn't ship it since it was sold out. That was kind of disappointing, especially since Song Sparrow had offered it for $8.00 less than Hollingsworth did this year.

Fall Peony Planting Season!
When I received the box today, I opened it and let the roots soak for a hour or so while I dug the planting holes and mixed in some lime and organic fertilizer. Then I planted them as soon as I'd finished digging the holes and mixing in the additions. I'll be curious to see if either one of them sends up a bloom for me next spring or waits a couple of years to settle in. If you haven't gotten your 2013 peony orders in this year, there's still a little time. Soon you'll have to wait until 2014 to place an order. So get your 2013 peony order in while you still can!

2013 New Dirt for Tree Peony Garden

Another pile! Today I got a new pile of dirt delivered for my future tree peony garden. I don't really grow any tree peonies right now. I've planted a few seeds. I've ordered a couple of seedlings and divisions this year. Now I want to create a nice home for them and perhaps a few nice named varieties of tree peonies. I am converting my old peony moon garden, which used to hold several varieties of coral peonies, but I've since moved those to my New Coral Peony Sun Garden since this garden is a bit too shady for them. So I figured it might be a nice home for some tree peonies which supposedly like at least a bit of shade anyway. I did finish getting the soil raked out today. So now the bed is ready for some tree peonies to move in. I still have to move a couple more herbaceous peonies out of this garden, but other than that it's ready to go!
New Dirt for Tree Peony Garden

2013 Free Tree Trimmings for Peony Mulch

I am so excited! I'm excited by this giant pile of organic matter! I got a load of tree trimmings dumped in my back yard to use as mulch today, for FREE! I love free. Some of this mulch is headed for my peony beds and most likely some of this mulch will end up on the tree peony garden I'm planning in place of my old peony moon garden. That's the garden I've been moving peonies out of to create my New Coral Peony Sun Garden. If you could use a lot of mulch on lots of planting beds, taking a truckload off the hands of your local tree trimming company is a great way to do it. You help them dump one of their loads of mulched trimmings, and you get a load of fresh mulch at no charge. If you've never heard of this before, just call up one of your local tree service companies and ask them. Most of the time they'll be willing to deliver a truckload of mulch right to your door at no charge to you. Mulch is great for peonies here in our southern climate. The mulch helps prevent weeds and retain moisture - both of which will help keep your peonies happy! :-)

Tree Trimmings for Peony Mulch

2013 American Peony Society Gold Medal & ALM Photos

Yay! It's finally done! Yesterday I just completed a project I've been working on for a couple months now to get all of the American Peony Society award winning peony photos on their web site. If you've ever wondered if you had the correct APS Gold Medal award winning peony, or maybe you were just wondering what all of the award winning peonies looked like (so you could pick out your next acquisition!), then we finally have them all up in one place for your perusal! We are still missing 4 photos of Gold Medal peonies, but I hope to have those up later this year. We also have all of the APS Award of Landscape Merit (ALM) award winning peony photos on the web site now as well. The ALM peonies are specifically selected to perform well not only as a beautiful flower, but also as a landscape plant. These varieties have been evaluated based on garden performance and have been selected and awarded in more modern times (since 2009). Now you know! So go on over and check them out...! :-)

The American Peony Society Web Site

2013 New Fall Growth on Purple English Tree Peony

When watering my garden earlier this week, I noticed some new fall growth on one of the Purple Tree Peony Seedlings From Ebay UK. All of the existing foliage had already died back. This was probably due to the stress of shipment during the summer and the adjustment to a new climate. Anyway it's still alive! That's good news. I just hope these guys come back in the spring! One of them has two new leaves on it, and the other one doesn't have any active growth. Let's hope that one has just gone dormant for the year. It's nice to have something happening in the garden with peonies at this time of year. All the rest of my peonies are pretty inactive since things are winding down for peonies about now. The next thing will be the colorful fall foliage, which I'm looking forward to!

Purple Tree Peony Seedlings from UK


New Growth on Purple Tree Peony Seedling