Friday, April 7, 2017

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!

Saturday, April 1, 2017

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

Thursday, March 30, 2017

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

Monday, March 27, 2017

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

Saturday, March 25, 2017

2017 Monrovia Features Photoshopped Itoh Peony on Front Page


Continuous Color - Itoh Peonies

"Wow! What kind of flower is that?" That was my first reaction when I saw this flower photo on Monrovia's front page. My next thought was, "I really need one of those!" Then I realized it was a peony. Then I wondered if this was a new peony variety that I'd never seen before. So I clicked around on their site a bit more until I found the mystery peony in the photo on their main page. I clicked through to the "Itoh Peonies" section. At first glance, I did not see the mystery peony anywhere to be found. Why would they put a plant on their main page, that they don't even have for sale?, I thought. Then I realized they did have it for sale, and it was on their "Itoh Peonies" page. The flower form and shape was the same, but the colors and background were much different.

Monrovia's Main Page

The photo was of Intersectional Peony 'Julia Rose', a plant I already have and grow. I have seen this plant bloom for several years, and yet I did not recognize it. When I clicked on the "Julia Rose Itoh Peony" page, I saw a photo of the plant that looked much more familiar to me. Obviously the photo had been photoshopped. Why would they have altered the photo so much to make the plant unrecognizable? Sure the photo on the main page is gorgeous, but it doesn't exist. Are altered photos just a harmless way to help the flower industry grab the attention of people enough to get them interested? Or do they hurt the flower industry by promising something that's unattainable? What do you think?

Monrovia's 'Julia Rose' Itoh Peony