2012 Peony Blooms Late Season - Week 6

Wow, I think this is going to be the best late/very late season I've ever had in my garden. I actually have enough mature varieties to keep the blooms going a bit later this year. That and the weather has been much more cooperative this year. The rain has come only a day at a time, giving the blooms time to dry out after a shower. Peony 'Myra MacRae' has a lovely lavender tint to her pink double blossoms. Peony 'Solange' has a complex coloring with hints white and salmon in a pale pink very full double bloom. Peony 'Vivid Rose' has a nice medium pink shade with casual petals arranged in a symmetrical shape. Peony 'Walter Mains' has hot pink guard petals around central yellow tuft with sometimes small hot pink petaloids in the center. Nice!

Peony 'Myra MacRae'	Peony 'Solange'
Peony 'Vivid Rose'	Peony 'Walter Mains'

2012 Peony 'Bartzella' Best Performer - Week 5

To see the pictures from my favorite individual blooms from week 5, you can find them in my post 2012 Peony Blooms Late Mid - Week 5. My best performing peony plant as a whole was definitely Peony 'Bartzella'. She really outdid herself this year. Every year she has grown in stature, foliage, and blooms. There were so many blooms this year, the plant was laden! The color of the petals is such a bright yellow, and it really stands out in the garden, especially since yellow is a rare color in peonies. The bold yellow blooms are made possible by the plant's tree peony heritage. Peony 'Bartzella' is an intersectional peony, a cross between an herbaceous peony and the tree peony, Paeonia Lutea. Peony 'Bartzella' is also an American Peony Society Gold Medal winner from 2006.
Peony 'Bartzella'
Southern Peony Best Performer


Peony 'Bartzella'
Southern Peony Best Performer

2012 Peony Blooms Late Mid - Week 5

The blooms for week 5 have been awesome. The single and semi-double midseason blooms really shined in my garden this year. Peony 'Bartzella' is always beautiful and quite the showstopper with its bright yellow blooms. Peony 'Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt' always has such a delicate and feminine shape to her blooms, which is complemented by the delicate pink color of her petals. Peony 'Pink Princess' is a tall and proud peony with pale pink blooms that fade to white near the center and have beautiful spots on the petals that are so interesting to the eye. Peony 'Scarlet O'Hara' is the classic southern belle of a peony, with bright red petals surrounding a golden yellow center and pink tipped carpels.

Peony 'Bartzella'	Peony 'Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt
Peony 'Pink Princess'	Peony 'Scarlet O'Hara'

2012 Peony 'Do Tell' Best Performer - Week 4

If you want to see the pictures from my favorite individual blooms from week 4, you can find them in my post 2012 Peony Blooms Mid Season - Week 4 . As for my favorite overall performer for the bush as a whole for week 4, there is no contest. It is definitely Peony 'Do Tell'. This peony has a multitude of pink blooms with an interesting pink and white center of tiny wavy petals. It almost looks like a hairdo that Ke$ha would wear! The blooms open on different days. So they will usually last for a couple weeks. The plant is a consistent bloomer and grower year after year in this climate, multiplying steadily at a rapid pace. It seems to be very happy here in my southern climate. It definitely earns its 2004 American Peony Society Gold Medal every year in my garden!
Peony 'Do Tell'
Southern Peony Best Performer

2012 Peony Blooms Mid Season - Week 4

The double and bomb type peonies really made their debut this week in the Midseason of the peony bloom season, Week 4. With bright colors and giant blooms how can anyone resist? Peony 'Kansas' did really well this year for me. The hot pink blooms really stood out. Peony 'Many Happy Returns' has such a nice red color and form. Peony 'Red Charm' is an awesome bomb type peony and the most true red you'll find. Peony 'Rose Heart' bloomed for me for the 2nd time this year, and the bloom was so much larger with the characteristic pink heart (center).

Peony 'Kansas'	Peony 'Many Happy Returns'
Peony 'Red Charm'	Peony 'Rose Heart'