2012 Peony New Beginnings

Dead Foliage in Peony Bed

2012, a new year, a new opportunity to see peony blossoms you've never seen before, to watch the growth of your existing plants, and reflect on growing seasons past. We have had such a mild winter so far. I am curious to see how this will affect the number and quality of the peony blooms. The weather was so warm I took the opportunity to do some cleaning up. I was out in my garden today cutting back dead peony foliage. However one of my peonies hadn't completely died back yet. It was the intersectional 'Yellow Crown' peony that so nicely produced a beautiful fall bloom for me last year. The foliage contained beautiful fall colors of red, orange, and gold. I went ahead and cut the remaining foliage off. Perhaps next year I will leave the foliage on as an experiment to see what happens.

Fall Colors of Peony 'Yellow Crown' with Dead Foliage of Peony 'Bartzella' in the Background

Peony 'Yellow Crown'

2011 Fall Peony Bloom for My Granny

My great grandmother, Ruth Hill, died this week. She was a loving and patient woman that serves as a great inspiration for me and many others. I cut the fall peony bloom from the 'Yellow Crown' peony today to lay on her casket. May the light from this golden peony bloom be a reminder to us of the light and love and warmth she shone upon us all. I love you, Granny.
Peony 'Yellow Crown'

Peony 'Yellow Crown'

Peony 'Yellow Crown' & Dead Fall Peony Foliage

2011 Fall 'Yellow Crown' Peony Bloom

Wow, I am really enjoying my first ever fall peony bloom! It is so beautiful, and it is so much fun to watch it unfold. It seems like it takes forever for the bloom to open! I guess it takes a little more patience for fall peony blooms, but the upside is probably that the blooms will last longer than they do in the spring. Oh, and the scent is heavenly, a sweet and strong floral peony scent. I wonder if the fragrance lasts longer in the fall as well? Hmm... I sure hope this repeats, and is not just a chance occurrence. :-)Fall Bloom on Peony 'Yellow Crown'
Fall Bloom on Peony 'Yellow Crown'

2011 Peony Fall Foliage Colors

The fall colors on the peonies this year are amazing! We've had a bit of a late fall, and the foliage has lasted a little longer than usual this year. Several varieties have long since gone dormant for the year, but there are so many more that are still going and keeping me entertained with their colors this season. From golden bronzes, to brilliant reds, and bright green to lime green, the peonies seem to have all the beautiful colors of fall. Here's a small sampling of the beauty of peonies in the fall...

Peony 'Sequestered Sunshine'	Peony 'Morning Lilac'
Peony 'Seashell'	Peony 'Queen of the Dawn'

2011 Fall Peony Bloom

What to my wondering eyes did appear, but a golden bloom on an intersectional peony! In November! Wow, that's definitely a first for me. I had noticed that this particular intersectional peony (Peony 'Yellow Crown') would send out new foliage in late summer for the past couple years, but this year it sent out new foliage and a bloom! Could this be just one of nature's flukes or perhaps the future of a new line of reblooming peonies? This is really exciting. Here's a picture from the plant today, November 8th. I will have to monitor this plant to see what happens with it next year! As you can see below, Peony 'Bartzella' (planted on the left) is nearing the end of its season, and its foliage is starting to look a bit ratty. However the foliage on Peony 'Yellow Crown' (planted on the right) looks brand new because this is its second set of foliage for the season. Its first set of foliage for the year has already died back. More pics to come...Peony 'Yellow Crown'
Peony 'Bartzella' & Peony 'Yellow Crown'