Articles about Peony buds
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Thursday, December 29, 2016

2016 Herbaceous Peony Buds

If you aren't dreaming about spring yet, I thought I'd share with you a few bud pictures from my 2016 peony bloom season this year. It seems like the beauty of peony buds goes largely unnoticed. However, they are quite beautiful, and there is much to appreciate in them. I enjoy seeing the different shapes and sizes of the peony buds, as well as all of the different colored petals peeking out! Some herbaceous peony buds have a nice pointed tip, while others are rounded balls of petals just waiting to unfurl! If you haven't paused to notice the beauty to be found before the bloom, be sure to take a peek at everything your peony plants have to offer this year! And don't forget to stop and smell the peonies! :-)
Peony 'Lavender' Bud
Peony 'Rose Garland' Bud
Peony 'Coral Charm' Bud
Peony 'Lovely Rose' Bud
Peony 'Red Charm' Bud
Peony 'Paula Fay' Bud

Thursday, September 15, 2016

2016 Best Performer Again Peony 'Keiko' with 77 Buds!


Peony 'Keiko'™ 愛幕 (Adored) aka Peony 'Pink Double Dandy'

Last year Peony 'Keiko'™ 愛幕 (Adored) was a Southern Peony Best Performer for 2015 Peony 'Keiko' (Adored) Best Performer - Week 4. I would be remiss to mention that it was a Best Performer again this year in my garden, and not just a Best Performer, but THE best performing plant in my garden for 2016. This one intersectional peony plant had 77 buds on it, and Every. Single. Bud. Opened. Not one of the buds was blasted. The blooms were not affected by the late frost we had. The blooms were not affected by disease or bugs or anything. There were 77 blooms on this plant. Last year there were 35. Every year, this plant just keeps getting bigger and better and the number of blooms just keeps increasing! I can't wait to see what it does next spring. The flowers open a rich, gorgeous medium pink and slowly fade to a lighter medium pink. If you haven't bought one of these peony plants for yourself yet, you need to find one, and buy it, and plant it - this fall! Peony 'Keiko'™ 愛幕 (Adored) aka Peony 'Pink Double Dandy' is one peony plant your garden should not be without!

Peony 'Keiko'™ 愛幕 (Adored) aka Peony 'Pink Double Dandy'

Friday, April 1, 2016

2016 Tree Peony Buds

I am really excited to see these tree peony buds bloom! I have 6 different tree peonies with buds on them this year, and I have only seen one of them bloom before - Tree Peony 'White Phoenix'. That means 5 of these I have never seen bloom before. Yippee! Two of these that I have labeled as Unknown are the first two plants from the 2013 Ali Express Chinese Tree Peonies $5.52 for 3! that have gotten a bud. So I am excited to see what mystery tree peonies I got from China! Also since these are the only 6 tree peonies in my garden with buds, that also means that several more tree peonies do not have buds and will not bloom this year including some tree peonies that have bloomed for me in the past. (I'm still getting the hang of this tree peony thing.) However, 6 distinct tree peony varieties with buds is the most I have ever had bloom in a single year before. So I am filled with anticipation to meet these new beauties...
Tree Peony 'Black Lotus' Bud
Tree Peony Unknown White?
Tree Peony 'Tria'
Tree Peony Unknown
Tree Peony 'White Phoenix'
Tree Peony 'Lavender Hill'

Monday, March 21, 2016

2016 Peony 'Nova' Buds Snaking Out of the Ground

With over two weeks of weather in the 70s, all of my peonies are popping up. Even Peony 'Nova' is snaking its way out of the ground. With all of this warm weather those 2016 Very Early Peony 'Nova' Buds Emerge First are still alive. Only that one bud was blasted last month. The rest of them are fine. Now three more buds have emerged to join those early two. One of them is snaking its way up out of the ground and another one is about to bloom before it even grows up out of the ground. It is really exciting to see them make so much progress in the last two weeks! However, the last couple days have turned colder (just in time for the start of spring!), and the overnight temperatures for last night and tonight are in the 30s. Tonight's overnight forecast is 35 degrees. So it should stay above freezing. Let's hope so, I am eager to see these beauties in full bloom!

Peony 'Nova' Snaking Out of the Ground

Monday, March 7, 2016

2016 Very Early Peony 'Nova' Buds Emerge First

I am getting a little excited. I have been growing this very early Peony 'Nova' plant for three years now. However, I have not yet seen it bloom. Every year, its buds are blasted. This is the only peony I grow with the very curious habit of pushing out huge bloom buds out of the ground first. I suppose its buds develop over the winter, much earlier than most other varieties. Then when Peony 'Nova' starts to emerge from the ground in the spring, these huge buds are very susceptible to bud blast by a late freeze. As you can see from last year's 2015 Saunders Peony Varieties Frozen Bud Blast report, all of Peony 'Nova's buds were blasted last spring.

Peony 'Nova' Bloom Buds Emerge First

From the photo above you can see that Peony 'Nova' buds emerge so early, one of them was already blasted earlier this winter. Now two more have arrived, and hopefully we'll get to see them bloom this year! We shouldn't get any more late freezes before they bloom, since our local groundhog, Sir Walter Wally, predicted an early spring this year. ;-) On a more scientific note, our local 10 Day Forecast looks like we'll have 10 days in a row of 70 degree temperatures starting tomorrow! Also the overnight temperature will range from the upper 40s to the upper 50s. If that doesn't sound like an early spring, I don't know what does! Hopefully it will be enough to coax these beautiful Peony 'Nova' blossoms from their buds!

Local Weather - 10 Day Forecast

Sunday, February 7, 2016

2016 Intersectional Peonies Suffered Frozen Bud Blast

Nope. Not even all of the intersectional peonies were able to withstand that late cold winter blast last spring. You would think with their tough guy image and strong tree peony like woody stems, they would just shrug off a cold blast. Unfortunately some varieties had blasted buds and some had both blasted buds and a reduction in blooms from the previous year. Not all of my intersectional peonies are rated here. Some of them were too small and/or immature to evaluate or there was not enough data to make a proper evaluation. Check out the table below to see who suffered in the cold...

Intersectional Peonies with Buds Blasted by Late Freeze
Peony Variety
2015 Bloom
2014 Bloom
Blast Rate
Bloom Reduction
Peony 'Little Darlin'
0 of 3
4 of 4
100%
100%
Peony 'Scarlet Heaven'
0 of 2
2 of 2
100%
100%
Peony 'Morning Lilac'
1 of 3
8 of 8
67%
88%
Peony 'Pastel Splendor'
3 of 3
10 of 10
0%
70%
Peony 'Sonoma Amethyst'
7 of 7
16 of 21
0%
56%
Peony 'Julia Rose'
8 of 8
10 of 10
0%
20%
Peony 'Garden Treasure'
13 of 16
15 of 15
19%
13%


2015 Intersectional Peony Garden

There were however several varieties which did shrug off that winter cold, seemingly unaffected by the late frost, that did not suffer any reduction in bloom or bud blast. These intersectional peonies all increased (or maintained) their bloom counts. Only one of these varieties suffered some bud blast. I am amazed to see three of Don Smith's Japanese named Intersectional Peonies sold by Monrovia as the top three in this list! I'm guessing the other Japanese named peony in that collection is not on this list only because it was too immature in my garden to evaluate. I am also not surprised to see Peony 'Cora Louise' on this list which was nominated for the APS Gold Medal last year, and it almost won, Peony 'Bartzella' which already won the APS Gold Medal in 2006, and Peony 'Keiko' a 2015 Southern Peony Best Performer.

Intersectional Peonies Unaffected by Late Freeze
Peony Variety
2015 Bloom
2014 Bloom
Blast Rate
Bloom Increase
Peony 'Yumi' 由美 (Possess Beauty)
3 of 3
0 of 0
0%
300%
Peony 'Keiko' 愛幕 (Adored)
35 of 35
9 of 9
0%
288%
Peony 'Takara' 慈悲 (Treasure)
19 of 19
6 of 6
0%
216%
Peony 'Cora Louise'
11 of 11
5 of 5
0%
120%
Peony 'Copper Kettle'
2 of 4
1 of 1
50%
100%
Peony 'Yellow Crown'
11 of 11
6 of 6
0%
83%
Peony 'Bartzella'
7 of 7
4 of 5
0%
75%
Peony 'White Emperor'
9 of 9
9 of 9
0%
0%


Intersectional Peony 'Keiko' 愛幕 (Adored)

Friday, February 5, 2016

2016 Mid Season Peonies Suffered Frozen Bud Blast

After finishing my 2016 Peony Data Entry in Winter Time, I remembered not just how many 2015 Early Peonies Suffered Frozen Bud Blast, but also how many mid season peonies suffered bud blast last year as well. It was painfully obvious during my data entry when Peony 'Red Charm' did not even have a bloom date since all of its buds were blasted (and Peony 'Red Charm's bloom date is usually used as the basis for the bloom date offset). I have already compiled the data on my early blooming Saunders peonies that suffered bud blast, 2015 Saunders Peony Varieties Frozen Bud Blast. So here are the midseason peonies in my garden that suffered bud blast from the late winter cold we received last year. Since midseason peonies develop a little later than early season peonies, most of their buds were very small when they were blasted by the cold. So there was not a large bud that had turned brown as evidence of the bud blast. Instead these varieties usually bloom reliably, and they either didn't bloom at all or their blooms were severely reduced. Also I'm listing a few more early varieties that are not Saunders varieties (so they weren't on my previous list).
Early Peonies with Buds Blasted by Late Freeze
Peony Variety
2015 Bloom
2014 Bloom
Blast Rate
Bloom Reduction
Peony 'Early Scout' (Early)
0 of 3
7 of 7
100%
100%
Peony 'Roy Pehrson's Best Yellow' (Early)
3 of 15
10 of 12
80%
70%
Peony 'Coral Fay' (Early)
6 of 6
12 of 12
0%
50%

2015 Peony 'Coral Fay' Plant
2014 Peony 'Coral Fay' Plant


Midseason Peonies with Buds Blasted by Late Freeze
Peony Variety
2015 Bloom
2014 Bloom
Blast Rate
Bloom Reduction
Peony 'Red Charm'
0 of 4
5 of 5
100%
100%
Peony 'First Lady'
0 of 3
4 of 4
100%
100%
Peony 'Nymphe'
0 of 0
3 of 4
100%
100%
Peony 'Pink Princess'
1 of 4
7 of 7
75%
86%
Peony 'Pillow Talk'
2 of 4
11 of 12
50%
82%
Peony 'Kansas'
7 of 11
39 of 44
36%
82%
Peony 'Myra MacRae'
7 of 7
38 of 42
0%
82%
Peony 'Doris Cooper'
2 of 4
9 of 13
50%
78%
Peony 'Solange'
9 of 13
32 of 32
31%
72%
Peony 'Cherry Charm'
4 of 5
14 of 14
20%
71%
Peony 'My Love'
9 of 9
30 of 34
0%
70%
Peony 'Guidon'
14 of 17
44 of 63
18%
68%
Peony 'Lemon Chiffon'
1 of 4
3 of 3
75%
66%
Peony 'Many Happy Returns'
3 of 7
8 of 8
57%
63%
Peony 'Do Tell'
5 of 9
13 of 16
44%
62%
Peony 'Kelway's Glorious'
7 of 7
15 of 23
0%
53%
Peony 'America'
2 of 5
4 of 5
60%
50%
Peony 'Bowl of Cream'
5 of 8
8 of 10
38%
38%
Peony 'White Frost'
14 of 15
22 of 24
7%
36%
Peony 'Rose Heart'
4 of 7
6 of 6
43%
33%

Friday, July 17, 2015

2015 Saunders Peony Varieties Frozen Bud Blast

Since I have a separate garden dedicated specifically to peony varieties hybridized by Professor A. P. Saunders, it was easily apparent to me that several of these varieties suffered from bud blast due to the late freeze we received in March of this year. Earlier this year I documented how my Early Peonies Suffered Frozen Bud Blast. Now that I have collected some more specific data on bud counts, I wanted to share those findings too. Most of these very early and early blooming Saunders peonies suffered some bud damage fromt the late freeze. However there were a couple varieties that came through unscathed. I have several Saunders peonies that are still a bit immature and or recovering from being divided. So I've chosen not to include all of the Saunders peonies I grow in this table.
Saunders Peonies with Buds Blasted by Late Freeze
Peony Variety
Buds Blasted
Total Buds
Blast Rate
Peony 'Halcyon'
2
2
100%
Peony 'Honor'
6
6
100%
Peony 'May Music'
5
5
100%
Peony 'Nova'
2
2
100%
Peony 'Paladin'
6
6
100%
Peony 'Winterthur'
3
3
100%
Peony 'Lustrous'
8
9
89%
Peony 'Horizon'
4
5
80%
Peony 'Firelight'
6
8
75%
Peony 'Early White'
1
2
50%
Peony 'Lavender'
2
4
50%
Peony 'Sweet May'
4
8
50%
Peony 'Garden Peace'
7
15
47%
Peony 'Lovely Rose'
3
10
30%

There were a few Saunders peonies whose buds werent' affected by the late freeze at all. So if your area regularly encounters late freezes, and you'd like to grow some early blooming peony varieties, these are the Saunders peonies I'd recommend.
Peony 'Grace Root'
Peony 'Great Lady'
Peony 'Rose Garland'

Saunders Peonies Unaffected by Late Freeze
Peony Variety
Buds Blasted
Total Buds
Blast Rate
Peony 'Grace Root'
0
9
0%
Peony 'Great Lady'
0
3
0%
Peony 'Rose Garland'
0
5
0%

Friday, May 1, 2015

2015 Early Peonies Suffered Frozen Bud Blast

Despite the gorgeous photos of my 2015 Peony Blooms Week 2 - Early, my early peonies suffered quite a bit of bud blast this year from our late winter weather and overnight freezing temperatures. During March we had 4 nights with freezing weather where the temperatures dipped into the 20s at night. The average night time temperatures for this area in March are in the 30s and 40s. The first three nights with 20° temperatures were on March 1st, 6th, and 7th. The peony buds probably would have been okay at this point, but on March 29th, we experienced a 22° low, after the lows had been in the 30s and 40s subsequently. There was even a low of 57° only three nights prior. All of this adds up to damaged buds on peonies that were preparing to bloom in early April. However the late freeze not only stopped the bud growth in its tracks, it even wasted a few stems on some early herbaceous peonies as well.
Peony 'Lemon Chiffon'
Main Bud Blasted, Side Bud Grows
Peony 'Roy Pehrson's Best Yellow'
Main Bud Blasted, Side Bud Grows
Peony 'Lemon Chiffon'
Main Bud Blasted
Peony 'Roy Pehrson's Best Yellow'
Main Bud Blasted

The photos of these two peonies, Peony 'Lemon Chiffon' and Peony 'Roy Pehrson's Best Yellow' both show an example of something I noticed on several early peonies this year that usually have multiple blooms per stem. The main (and most developed) bud suffered bud blast, while the later developing side buds were not affected and were able to continue developing. So the stage of bud development definitely has some bearing on whether the buds will survive such cold weather. The more developed the bud when the cold hits, the less chance it has of surviving. There are also lots of examples of peonies whose main buds were blasted, leaving no survivig buds on the stem. These are usually on peonies that only have one bloom per stem like Peony 'Nova' and Peony 'Honor'.

Peony 'Nova'
Main Bud Blasted
Peony 'Honor'
Main Bud Blasted
Peony 'Lustrous'
Main Bud Blasted
Peony 'Early Scout'
Main Bud Blasted

Peony 'Firelight' seemed to suffer the most from the late freeze in my garden this year. Although it did manage to get a few blooms open, the majority of the buds on this plant were blasted by the freezing cold weather. Its foliage growth was even stunted by the cold air. On a couple of stems on this plant, not just the buds were blasted, but the actual stem was wasted by the frigid temps. You can see a couple of these wasted stems in the photo hanging limply with their blasted buds upside down. This tough peony was not to be defeated though, as it sent up and extra latecomer - a replacement stem with a bud ready to bloom on it!


Peony 'Firelight' Buds Blasted, Foliage Stunted, and Stems Wasted


Peony 'Firelight' Sends Up a Replacement Stem


Thursday, April 9, 2015

2015 Spring Peony Buds of a Different Color

I was out early this morning in the garden, and the peonies were all wet with a fresh spring rain. As I wait in anticipation for the peony buds to burst open with a rainbow of colors, I can't help but notice the peony buds swelling in a multitude of different colors, shapes, and forms. Peony 'Coral Charm' has bright red stems beneath its bright green buds. Peony 'Early Scout' holds it buds tightly above its nice cut foliage. Peony 'Firelight' has bright red buds above a fuzzy stem. The petals are beginning to peek through on Peony 'Flame' and Peony 'Lustrous'. Peony 'Garden Peace' has a wide range of hues in its bud cluster from purple, burgundy, pink, orange, and bright green. Peony 'Lavender' even has lavender in its stems, leaves, and buds! Peony 'Nova' holds a yellow tipped green buds over fuzzy stems. Peony 'Rose Garland' has a bright green bud over a bright green stem. Their multitude of differences tells of lots of different genetic material floating around in their DNA. I keep waiting for the first peony bloom to open. The first peony to bloom is usually Peony 'Early Scout', but some other peony may win the race this year. We'll see!
Peony 'Coral Charm'
Bud
Peony 'Early Scout'
Bud
Peony 'Firelight'
Bud
Peony 'Flame'
Bud
Peony 'Garden Peace'
Bud
Peony 'Lavender'
Bud
Peony 'Lustrous'
Bud
Peony 'Nova'
Bud
Peony 'Rose Garland'
Bud

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

2014 First Peony Seedlings to Bloom This Spring!

Well, it almost happened last spring. I had my First Peony Seedling with a Developing Bud last spring, and sadly it never matured, First Peony Seedling Develops Immature Bud. However this year, I'm sure I will see some original blooms from my peony seedling bed. There are already 4 different plants with buds on them and the buds are growing larger by the day! Last year the peony plant with a bud on it was a seedling of 'Lady Alexandra Duff'. This year, there are two peony plants from 'Pink Princess' and two peony plants from 'Lady Alexandra Duff' with buds on them. So there are at least 4 plants with buds on them already. Some of the peony seedlings' foliage is still emerging so there may be more buds to come. I am so excited to see my first blooms from peonies I grew from seed from my own garden. I will definitely keep you posted on the progress and will be sure to post photos of the blooms as well!

2008 Peony Seedlings


Peony Seedling Buds

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

2014 Peonies on Ice


Ice Coating on Tree Branches

When I awoke yesterday morning, everything was covered in a thin layer of ice. This has been a particularly long and cold winter for us this year. Tomorrow is the first day of spring, and winter just wanted to make sure we knew it wasn't over yet! We've already had a couple of 70 degree days (on the weekends usually - thank goodness), but they have been rare. This weekend we should have another 70 degree day, and I can't wait. Luckily yesterday was very cloudy all day so the sun shouldn't have caused any frost damage to the foliage.

Peony 'Li Yuan Chun' with a Coating of Ice

As you can see there are already a couple of swelling buds on this tree peony since the last time I photographed it in February - 2014 First Signs of (Tree Peony) Life). Even the peony sign has a layer of ice on it. I'm not sure how much longer it will be until this tree peony blooms, but I am ready for it. I can't wait to see its blooms for the first time. Come on spring!!!

Peony Sign 'Li Yuan Chun' with a Coating of Ice

Friday, February 28, 2014

2014 First Signs of (Tree Peony) Life


Tree Peony 'Li Yuan Chun'

Well even though it doesn't quite feel like spring yet, and it is still February, I am starting to see the first signs of life on some of my tree peonies (including some of the very cheap sticks / Tree Peonies I Planted from China!) I can't believe how much one of the more mature and Expensive Tree Peonies from a tree peony farm here in the US, Tree Peony Garden, has already started to grow. I'm guessing this one will have at least one blossom this year (or maybe more), and I can't wait to see its lovely pink flower. Also 3 of the Tree Peonies from China via Ali Express are already showing signs of life via tiny red buds originating at their base. I planted most of these as deep as possible hoping they would develop their own roots and prevent any possible grafted roots from sprouting. So we'll see when their leaves open whether these are tree peony sprouts or herbaceous peony sprouts.

Sprouting Tree Peony from China via Ali Express


Sprouting Tree Peony from China via Ali Express


Sprouting Tree Peony from China via Ali Express