2019 New Label Maker for Peony Garden Signs Brother P-Touch PT-D600

I finally bit the bullet and bought a new label maker for my peony garden signs (and all of my other garden plant signs), and I love it! My old Brother P-Touch PT-1500PC, 2012 Brother P-Touch Peony Outdoor Plant Labels, finally bit the dust. I was trying to buy a replacement used one of the same model on Ebay, but everyone wanted about $35 with shipping. That was just too high for me to purchase a used device.


New Brother P-Touch PT-D600 Label Maker
So then I decided to see what newer models Brother had available that could connect to your PC. The Brother PT-D600 seemed to be their newest PC connectable model, but it also has a keyboard and you can design the labels directly on it as well (with a color screen). However the price was like $76 on Amazon. So I just added it to my shopping basket, hoping that the price would come down. I've been without a label maker for a few months now, and the price on the label maker finally came down to the $50 range this past Sunday! For only $15 more (than the price of a used label maker), I could get a newer model that I could create labels on my PC or just on the machine itself. So I snagged one right away. I just got it set up last night, and I love it!


Brother P-Touch PT-D600 Label Maker on Amazon.
(This is not an affiliate link.)
It prints faster than the old label maker. It also internally cuts the tape for you automatically as soon as it finishes printing, and it doesn't waste as much tape at the beginning and end of the print. The old unit actually wasted quite a bit of tape on both sides of what your were printing. So this new unit should actually save me money in the long run since it uses the tape much more efficiently! I am also able to use the same Brother P-Touch Editor software I had installed for my old label maker, and all of the previous label templates I created still work beautifully on this new one. If you are looking for a new label maker (or don't have one at all yet), I highly recommend this one! (I'd also try to snag one while the price is still $49.99. I'm sure Amazon will raise the price again soon!

2019 Solaris Farms Adds New Hot Herbaceous Peonies

Peony 'Dreamtime'
I noticed something quite interesting when I was creating my 2019 Herbaceous Hot 100 Peony Catalog Price Comparison List this year. Solaris Farms has become the leader in the "hot herbaceous" category this year, adding 8 more high demand varieties than last year for a total of 22 offered this year. Hollingsworth Nursery is still right up there with 21 "hot herbaceous" varieties offered. These two have been trading the leader position for the last couple of years in this category, but no other peony grower even comes close to the number of pricey, next generation peonies offered by these two growers. Both Solaris Farms and Hollingsworth Nursery have offered hot peony variety selections in the double digits, while all of the other growers have single digit offerings. Somehow I was lucky enough to get a root of Peony 'Dreamtime' last year. I am really looking forward to seeing what it does this spring!


Peony 'Dreamtime' Offered at Solaris Farms 2019

2019 Swenson Gardens $25 Intersectional Peonies!

Peony 'Prairie Charm' @ Southern Peony
When creating my 2019 Intersectional Peony Catalog Price Comparison List this year, I noticed something I'd never seen before! A $25 Intersectional Peony!!! This is the first time ever that these gorgeous beauties have been offered for sale at this low of a price directly from a peony grower! Swenson Gardens is the vendor who actually was the first to offer this price drop, and it is not just one intersectional peony at this price point, but 3 of them! They are offering Intersectional Peony 'Border Charm', Intersectional Peony 'Prairie Charm', and Intersectional Peony 'Shining Light' for $25 each. It's definitely an exciting time to see the intersectional peony prices begin to approach the lower price points of standard herbaceous peonies!

Peony 'Border Charm' and Intersectional Peony 'Prairie Charm' were both hybridized by Don Hollingsworth (check out my interview with him here - 2016 Peony Hybridizer Interview - Don Hollingsworth), while Intersectional Peony 'Shining Light' has an unknown hybridizer of Japanese origin. I grow both 'Border Charm' and 'Prairie Charm' here in my Southern Peony garden. (See my photo of Peony 'Prairie Charm' above.) All three of these varieties are yellow flowering intersectional peonies. So if you don't yet have a yellow peony or you want to try a new yellow intersectional, this might be the time to do it!


Swenson Gardens Offers $25.00 Intersectional Peonies!

2019 Peony 'Miss America' Featured in Plant Delights Nursery February Flyer

Peony 'Miss America' in Plant Delights Nursery Flyer
I got a nice flyer in the mail this month from Plant Delights Nursery. It is advertising their upcoming open houses this weekend and next weekend. They are only open once a season for 2 weekends - so 8 total weekends a year. The flyer also features some special plants they'd like to highlight, and I couldn't help but notice the large photo of Peony 'Miss America' in the bottom right corner. Peony 'Miss America' is an American Peony Society Gold Medal Winner. It is a lovely semi-double white peony that can range from a few layers of white petals with a bright yellow center to a very full petalled semi-double where the yellow center is barely visible. I guess Plant Delights is making sure their customers remember to purchase and plant their potted peonies now for a good spring show! I am also thinking about the hellebore show they are going to have going on in their greenhouses in the next couple of weeks. If you haven't been before it's definitely worth the trip. :)

2019 Intersectional Peonies at Lowe's 3 for $29.98

Intersectional / Itoh Peonies for Sale at Lowe's
I'm not sure if I've ever seen a deal this good on Itoh / Intersectional Peonies before. If you haven't seen them yet, Lowe's Home Improvement is selling 3 Intersectional Peony roots in a box for $29.98! That's a really good deal considering the cheapest Intersectional Peony that I track on my price list, 2019 Intersectional Peony Catalog Price Comparison List is $25 (plus shipping) for one (and that's the lowest price, the average price is $73)! Each "ITOH PEONIES" box has 3 peonies in it. The boxes all have 2 varieties in each box, with a mix of Intersectional Peony 'Bartzella' and one other peony. However I couldn't see how many you got of each. I'm guessing since it didn't tell you how many of each variety, that there are probably 2 'Bartzella's and 1 of the other variety in each box.


'Bartzella' & 'Scarlet Heaven' Peony Set
Intersectional Peony 'Bartzella' is a great peony to own anyway. It is an American Peony Society Gold Medal Winner and and American Peony Society Award of Landscape Merit Winner. It is also a Southern Peony Best Performer, 2012 Peony 'Bartzella' Best Performer - Week 5. From what I could see, it seems they are selling three combinations: Peony 'Bartzella' & Peony 'Cora Louise', Peony 'Bartzella' & Peony 'Canary Brilliants', and Peony 'Bartzella' & Peony 'Scarlet Heaven'. If you don't grow some of these varieties or if you think intersectional peonies have been too expensive for you to grow in the past, then this is an excellent opportunity to try them. Also if you do grow these varieties and you'd like to grow more of them, here's your chance to stock up!


'Bartzella' & 'Cora Louise' Peony Set

'Bartzella' & 'Canary Brilliants' Peony Set

2019 It's Starting! Herbaceous Peonies are Growing!

I can't believe it is starting already. I found a few of my existing herbaceous peonies that I've had for years that have decided to start growing. Spring will be here before we know it! The first three I've found so far this year are Peony 'Tropicana', Peony 'Pink Hawaiian Coral, and Peony 'America'. Also the Peony 'Glowing Candles' that sprouted super early, 2019 Peony 'Glowing Candles' Tries to Grow Again in January, has been hanging on for a while now. It is very determined and even has two foliage shoots now! However I'm not sure yet if I will see a bloom from it this spring or not. It is just so exciting beginning to see the first signs of spring. My hellebores are coming into full bloom now, and the daphnes have been heavily perfuming the air - what a gorgeous and good smelling preview of what's to come!


Peony 'Tropicana'

Peony 'Pink Hawaiian Coral'

Peony 'America'

Peony 'Glowing Candles'

2019 Herbaceous Hot 100 Peony Catalog Price Comparison List

I've been doing my Intersectional Peony Catalog Price Comparison Lists for a few years now. However this will be only the third year that I list some of the pricey herbaceous peonies that people might be interested in. There are several up and coming hot herbaceous peonies that tend to be around or above the $100 price range. Some of these peonies can be hard to find and acquire because their stock is so limited (and some are sold out already). So this list will give you a heads up of where you can find them and who has them priced for what. You can also check out last year's 2018 Herbaceous Hot 100 Peony Catalog Price Comparison List, if you want to know the exact prices for these peonies last year. Even if you don't want to spend that much on one peony (yet!), at least you can drool! Enjoy! (Also if you'd like your company to be listed here, please join the American Peony Society as a Commercial Member, since this is where I obtain my peony grower information.)


2019 Southern Peony Herbaceous Hot 100 Peony Price List
Peony 'Lemon Chiffon'
I am missing a few prices from Hidden Springs Flower Farm this year since I didn't have a chance to collect it right away. If anyone ordered any of the sold out varieties, please email me or leave a comment to let me know what the price(s) were, and I will update the list.

Varieties Offered	Peony Vendor	Price Change from Last Year
6	Adelman		mixed, lower, same, & higher
3	Blossom Hill		same
4	Brooks		some lower, some same
1	Cricket Hill		same
1	Fina		same
5	Hidden Springs		same
21	Hollingsworth		mostly lower
0	Peony's Envy		same
5	Peony Shop Holland		mostly lower
22	Solaris Farms		mixed, lower, same, & higher
1	Song Sparrow		same
7	Swenson		higher

Herbaceous Peony	Price	Vendor
Bethie	$300.00	Hollingsworth
Black Swan	C$75.00	Blossom Hill
Blood Moon	$300.00	Solaris Farms
Bob	$?.00	Hidden Springs
Dreamtime	$150.00	Solaris Farms
Dreamtime	$?.00	Hidden Springs
Early Canary	$100.00	Hollingsworth
Faithful Dream	$150.00	Hollingsworth
Fire Bomb	$150.00	Swenson
Garden Gem	$90.00	Hollingsworth
Gena Marie	$350.00	Hollingsworth
Golden Angel	$90.00	Solaris Farms
Golden Angel	$125.00	Song Sparrow
Golden Wheel	$79.00	Cricket Hill
Good Cheer	$90.00	Solaris Farms
Heather	$350.00	Hollingsworth
John's Dream	C$350.00	Blossom Hill
Juliska	$65.00	Solaris Farms
Juliska	$?.00	Hidden Springs
Kathy's Touch	€75.00	Peony Shop Holland
Kathy's Touch	$85.00	Brooks
Kathy's Touch	$90.00	Hollingsworth
Kayleigh Ann	$300.00	Hollingsworth
Kim	$450.00	Solaris Farms
KimSue	$300.00	Hollingsworth
Lavender	$100.00	Swenson
Lavender	$120.00	Hollingsworth
Lemon Chiffon	€24.00	Peony Shop Holland
Lemon Chiffon	$70.00	Hollingsworth
Lemon Chiffon	$75.00	Brooks
Lemon Chiffon	$?.00	Hidden Springs
Lemon Chiffon	$75.00	Solaris Farms
Lemon Chiffon	$80.00	Adelman
Lemon Chiffon	$115.00	Fina
Little Corporal	$160.00	Solaris Farms
Lois' Choice	$75.00	Brooks
Lois' Choice	$80.00	Solaris Farms
Lois' Choice	$100.00	Hollingsworth
Lois' Choice	$120.00	Adelman
Manitowoc Maiden	$70.00	Solaris Farms
Necromancer	$70.00	Solaris Farms
Old Soldier	$75.00	Solaris Farms
Old Soldier	$80.00	Hollingsworth
Omega Centauri	$450.00	Solaris Farms
Origin of Serenity	$150.00	Solaris Farms
Paeonia mlokosewitschii	$80.00	Adelman
Pastelegance	€175.00	Peony Shop Holland
Pastelegance	$175.00	Solaris Farms
Pastelegance	$180.00	Hollingsworth
Pastelegance	$199.00	Adelman
Pastelegance	$200.00	Swenson
Pastelorama	$200.00	Solaris Farms
Pastelorama	$300.00	Hollingsworth
Peachy Rose	$75.00	Brooks
Pink Bubbles	$70.00	Hollingsworth
Plum Surprise	$100.00	Swenson
Roger's Red	$400.00	Swenson
Romantic Elegance	$?.00	Hidden Springs
Queen Rose	$100.00	Swenson
Quitzin	€65.00	Peony Shop Holland
Quitzin	$200.00	Hollingsworth
Seidl's Super	$280.00	Solaris Farms
Stephen E Ambrose	$250.00	Swenson
Summer Glow	C$50.00	Blossom Hill
Summer Glow	$30.00	Solaris Farms
Sunny Day	$40.00	Hollingsworth
Sunny Day	€75.00	Peony Shop Holland
Sunny Boy	$200.00	Solaris Farms
Tropicana	$70.00	Solaris Farms
Tropicana	$100.00	Adelman
Tropicana	$100.00	Hollingsworth
Valkyrie (Seidl #74H120-2)	$80.00	Solaris Farms
Valkyrie (Seidl #74H120-2)	$100.00	Hollingsworth
Vanilla Schnapps	$115.00	Solaris Farms
Vanilla Schnapps	$150.00	Hollingsworth
Vanilla Schnapps	$185.00	Adelman
Virginia Emerson	$100.00	Hollingsworth

2019 Planting Open Pollinated Seed from Last Fall

2018 Open Pollinated Seeds in Bags
I know it is a little late, but I guess I just got back around to it. I finally got my seed planted from 2018. Maybe it was because I wasn't very excited about the seeds that I got, or maybe it was because I wasn't that excited about the number of seeds that I got. Whatever the reason, at least I finally got them planted. I guess I was a little disappointed that none of my intersectional crosses worked last year, 2018 Dismal Seed Production Year. Also it was actually a bad year for seed overall. Usually I have enough seeds that I am able to donate some to the American Peony Society Seed Distribution Program (which is a great program if you are looking to grow peonies from seed). This year, however, I only got 18 seeds, not just from one variety, but total - 18 seeds in total. It was a terrible year for seed production.


2018 Open Pollinated Seeds Planting Bed
I guess I finally decided to be thankful for what Mother Nature has given me (plus I got my label maker working again, well, working enough to print out a few seed labels). So I made a few signs for the seeds and got them planted on this nice 60 degree day in February (another thing to be thankful for, especially after the cold arctic blast we got this past week). I highly doubt these peony seeds will sprout this spring since I planted them so late, but at least they're in the ground. Hopefully I'll see some lovely peony blooms from them a few years down the road...

2019 Tree Peonies Starting to Peek Out

Unknown White Tree Peony
It's been a month since I first snapped a few photos of my tree peonies in January, 2019 New Year Holds (Peony) Promise! Although it is only February, I can already see some movement in the buds. I'm not sure if it is the temperatures or the length of our days that they are responding to (or maybe a combination of both), but they are definitely starting to grow a bit. Although tree peonies have been slow to start taking hold for me, I am starting to enjoy growing them a bit more. Also you get to watch them come to life long before the herbaceous and intersectional peonies start to wake up. If you don't yet grow any tree peonies, I'd definitely recommend trying one or two. They are certainly entertaining in these long winter months...


Tree Peony 'White Phoenix'

Tree Peony 'Chojuraku'

Tree Peony 'Yao Huang'

Tree Peony "Chinese Pink" Seedling

Tree Peony 'Sahohime'