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'

2016 Japanese Tree Peony 'Chojuraku' from Ebay

Tree Peony 'Chojuraku' 長寿楽 Garden Label	Tree Peony 'Chojuraku' 長寿楽 from Ebay

I just bought this Japanese Tree Peony 'Chojuraku' 長寿楽 from Ebay two weeks ago. It came quickly through the mail, and I got it planted quickly too. I must say I am really impressed by the size and age of this grafted plant. It is huge. I definitely feel like I got my money's worth from this Ebay seller - garden*breeze. This is the second peony I have purchased from them, and I have been happy with both. However, this isn't the case with all Ebay sellers, so I am planning on creating and Ebay peony seller's review. Hopefully I will be able to get to it this year! Another reason I am excited about this peony besides its large size is its color - lavender, my favorite! This Tree Peony 'Chojuraku' 長寿楽 looks like it may be a double flowering P. rockii hybrid since it has dark purple flares, and I really have been wanting a peony like that. I tried buying some Purple Peony Rockii Seeds from Ebay Canada last year, but they haven't sprouted yet. I'm not giving up hope on those yet since many of my own 2015 seed have not sprouted yet. However, I'm sure this Tree Peony 'Chojuraku' 長寿楽 will provide me with blooms much sooner!

2016 Second Bloom of the Year Peony 'Halcyon'

Second Peony Bloom of the Year
Peony 'Halcyon' Bloom
Well, my second peony of the year bloomed today, Peony 'Halcyon'. It is a gorgeous pale lavender pink, another pretty pastel spring color. I love the color lavender in peonies, and the lavender pink of this very early blooming A. P. Saunders variety hints at the lavender color of the later blooming (but still early blooming) Peony 'Lavender'. Since we had an early spring with no late frost to blast these early buds, all of my very early blooming peonies are blooming fabulously this year. The First Bloom of the Year was Peony 'Nova'. In fact, these early herbaceous peonies are even blooming before my tree peonies this year. Last year the First Peony Bloom of the Year was Tree Peony 'White Phoenix'. If your peonies haven't quite woken up yet, then you may want to consider adding some very early blooming peonies to your garden this fall.
Second Peony Bloom of the Year
Peony 'Halcyon'

2016 First Bloom of the Year Peony 'Nova'

First Peony Bloom of the Year
Peony 'Nova' Bloom
It was a rainy Easter today, and I cut my finger pretty bad last night. However, I got a nice surprise when I was walking around my garden today trying to lift my spirits. I found my first peony bloom of the year. Remember those 2016 Peony 'Nova' Buds Snaking Out of the Ground? Well, the tallest 'snake' was the first bud to bloom in my garden! I was so happy to see this bloom because not only was it the first peony to bloom this year in my garden, it was also the first time I had ever seen this Peony 'Nova' variety bloom.
First Peony Bloom of the Year
Peony 'Nova'
Peony 'Nova' is definitely a very early bloomer. I was also able to classify the bloom color as RHS Light Yellow 4D. I was very happy to meet a new blossom and have the opportunity to classify its color on the first bloom of my peony bloom season. Also what a nice peony bloom color to help celebrate Easter - a perfectly pastel yellow!
First Peony Bloom of the Year
Peony 'Nova' Plant

2016 Tree Peony 'Rou Fu Rong' (肉芙蓉) Still Alive

Since this peony was given to me as a gift at the last American Peony Society convention, I tried to take extra good care of it. However, in doing so, I may have inadvertently overwatered it last summer. According to this Caring for Tree Peonies article on the Kelways UK site, the biggest cause of failure for tree peonies is overwatering. Their site states in large, bold letters, "DO NOT OVERWATER NEWLY PLANTED PEONIES, THIS IS THE BIGGEST CAUSE OF FAILURE." Since the Kelways web site says they been growing peonies since 1851, I'm guessing they know what they're talking about.
Tree Peony 'Rou Fu Rong' 肉芙蓉 (Pink Hibiscus)
Our summers can get very hot and dry at times, and I wanted to make sure this tree peony had enough moisture. All three of the existing tree peony branches on it died, and I was worried that the plant may have died altogether. However, one small tree peony shoot has come up this spring from the base of the plant. I am so happy it is still alive. I had never been given a peony before, nor a tree peony. So this was a very nice surprise for me to receive this plant. I also received another peony as a gift at that convention, 2015 Hybridizing Peony Martha W., which arrived in the mail a couple of months after the convention. I am very excited and hopeful to see this tree peony, 'Rou Fu Rong' 肉芙蓉 (Pink Hibiscus) grow and prosper!
Tree Peony 'Rou Fu Rong' 肉芙蓉 (Pink Hibiscus) Sign