Phenomenal Peonies
Phenomenal Peonies
Peonies have spectacular, enormous, fragrant flowers on deciduous bush-like perennials to woody shrubs. The blooms are extremely showy, and the foliage remains attractive throughout the growing season of spring to summer. They will be the focal point in the garden as a specimen, accent, in border beds or as hedges.
They like well-drained soil rich with organic matter and regular water. They do not need supplemental fertilizer. Select your planting area thoughtfully as they do not like to be transplanted. Provide generous space between them when planting to provide good air circulation and to avoid stress.
There are two types of Peonies:
1. Herbaceous Peonies – Bush Peony
The foliage of herbaceous peonies will die back to the ground each fall and reemerge the following spring. Remove foliage in late fall and dispose of in the trash not compost, to avoid transmission of any disease. Next year’s buds form underground throughout summer and fall. Discontinue watering in early September to promote longer dormancy. Peonies need a chilling period to stimulate the growth of new buds. Depending upon the variety they require 500 to 1,000 chill hours at a temperature between 32 and 45°F.
This class of Peony is further broken down as follows:
Peonia x – Itoh Peony (Herbaceous)
The Itoh (Intersectional) peony is a 3’ x 3’ large perennial that is a hybrid of common herbaceous peonies and tree peonies. It was developed for the weather conditions of the Bay Area and will perform outstandingly here.
The long-lasting flowers are available in a variety of vibrant colors including yellow, coral, pink, red, and white in single and semi-double blooms up to 8 inches across. After the first year of establishment, they may experience multiple blooming periods.
In the fall, cut the dying foliage to about 4 to 6 inches from the soil level.
‘Bartzella’: Brilliant yellow double blossoms with slight red center wash and mild spicy scent. Late to mid-season.
‘Julia Rose’: Semi double deep pink flowers fading to soft apricot orange with slightly spicy scent. Late spring to early summer.
P. x Itoh ‘Bartzella’
P. x Itoh ‘Julia Rose’
P. x Itoh ‘Cora Louise’
Paeonia lactiflora – Bush Peony (Herbaceous)
The Bush Peony is a 2-3 ’ x 2-3’ clump-forming, large perennial with plush, fragrant flowers in shades of white, pink and crimson.
This species requires winters cold enough to induce plant dormancy so may have inconsistent performance in the coastal region of the Bay Area with our milld winters. Plant on the north side of your home or structure, preferably in the shade. Anecdotally it is shared, putting quantities of ice around the plant or buckets of near freezing water during the winter can be helpful.
In the fall, cut them back to 1” above the soil level and remove the foliage.
‘Duchess de Nemours’: Scented, double, creamy white ruffled inner petals with a touch of yellow at the center. Late spring to early summer.
‘Felix Crousse’: Fragrant, large (4-7”) double blossoms with ruffled, raspberry red petals. Late spring – early summer.
2. Tree Peonies
The Tree Peony is an upright to rounded woody shrub, approximately 3-6‘ x 4-5’. It has large blue green to bronze-green leaves with very large (8-10”) single to semi-double to double flowers that range in colors from white, red, pink, purple and yellow. Tree peonies set buds in late summer or fall so any corrective or desired pruning should be done in the summer to prevent bud loss by late or winter pruning. Remove spent flowers as they fade to possibly encourage additional blooms.
Paeonia suffructicosa
‘Kaoukamon’: Fragrant, huge, double bloom dark maroon petals with yellow stamens. Mid to late spring.
‘Red’: Fragrant, very large, double red blossoms up to 8-10” wide. Early spring to early summer.