2013 Peonies in Beijing, Shanghai, and Suzhou China

Recently my husband and I took a trip to his home country of China. This was my first visit there, and naturally my interest in peonies extended to peonies in China as well. We took tours in several Chinese cities, and everywhere we went I looked for peonies. They weren't too hard to find! I found them in their palaces, gardens, temples, and botanical gardens! Even though it was late fall and most of the peonies were dormant, I still searched for their barren sticks, trying to gather any information about Chinese peony cultivation that I could. Over 95% of the peonies I found were tree peonies. There were very few herbaceous peonies to be found. The majority of the tree peonies I saw had already had their leaves removed from their stems. Also the dirt was mounded around the base of the tree peonies stems. I'm not sure if that was in preparation for winter or if they leave it this way all year round. There was no mulch on any of their tree peonies. They were all grown in soil that appeared to have been heavily and continuously cultivated. The soil was never flat or smooth. It was always uneven, like mounded globs of dirt and soil all around the peonies.
Dormant Peonies at the Imperial Palace in Beijing, China
The first place I encountered peonies in China was at the Forbidden City in Beijing, China. The Forbidden City served as the imperial palace in China for almost 500 years. The peonies there were grown in an outdoor garden, almost like a courtyard. They were growing in partial shade through the filtered sunlight nearly underneath a canopy of mature evergreen trees. These tree peonies had already been defoliated and were growing in an unmulched, cultivated bed surrounded by stone walkways and very low concrete and metal fences for protection.


Master of the Nets Garden in Suzhou, China
The next location I happened upon peonies during my trip to China was in the Master of the Nets Garden in Suzhou, China. The Master of the Nets Garden is one of the 9 classical gardens in Suzhou recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The peonies here were grown in a small cultivated bed next to the central pond of the garden. The bed also contained a mature pine tree that created some filtered shade for the peony plants. Underneath the peonies grew a type of evergreen grass-like perennial, similar to mondo grass. These tree peonies had also been defoliated and grew inside the bed surrounded by a low, curved bamboo fence that had been painted green.


Dormant Peonies at the Master of the Nets Garden in Suzhou, China

"Only in the sun of civilization can trees maintain evergreen."
Sign in the Peony Garden at the Master of the Nets Garden in Suzhou, China

Longhua Temple in Shanghai, China
The third place I encountered peonies in China was at the Longhua Temple in Shanghai, China. The Longhua Temple is a Buddhist temple in Shanghai where my husband and his relatives were visiting the Buddhas. I found the peony garden near the back of the temple complex. The peonies there were grown in globular cultivated soil surrounded by a decorative low concrete wall. The garden was surrounded on three sides by temple buildings and stone walkways. Four herbaceous trees were grown in the courtyard surrounding each of the four corners of the peony garden, creating a canopy of filtered shade over the peonies. This was the first peony garden I found that contained herbaceous peonies as well as tree peonies, though the tree peonies vastly outnumbered the herbaceous ones. This was also the first peonies garden I'd encountered where the tree peonies has not yet been defoliated. The herbaceous peonies also had not yet been cut back. A few of the peonies still has some green foliage, although their season was nearing the end since their growing climate is similar to my own.


Tree Peonies (P. suffruticosa) at the Longhua Temple in Shanghai, China

Peony Garden at the Longhua Temple in Shanghai, China

Peony Garden Sign at the Shanghai Botanical Garden in Shanghai, China
"The 3.24-hectare Peony Garden was established in 1980. As peonies prefer deep, fertile, well-drained soil with medium moisture and full sun to part shade, shrubs and trees such as winter sweet (Chimonanthus praecox), camellia, Tilia spp., and camphor (Cinnamomum camphora) were planted to create a suitable growth environment and a beautiful landscape. The garden specializes in tree peonies (the Flower King) and peonies (the Flower Prime-Minister). Approximately 10,000 tree peony plants, including 102 cultivars, are collected here. Most of the cultivars are from the China central plains (Zhongyuan) cultivar group, such as 'Luo Yang Hong' and 'Wu Long Peon Sheng.' Other cultivars are from Ningguo and Cixi, which belong to the China Southern Yangtse (Jiangnan) cultivar group. The precious Japanese cultivars 'Yachiyotsubaki' and 'Jitsugetsu-nishiki', the French cultivar 'Chromatella', and the American cultivar 'High Noon' are all included in the garden. In addition, approximately 35 peony cultivars, including 'Da Fu Gui', 'Zhao Yuan Feng', and 'Zi Feng Chao Yang' are grown here. So many gorgeous and antique peonies make the garden the best place in Shanghai for visitors to enjoy spectacular peonies in late April."


Dormant Peonies at the Shanghai Botanical Garden in Shanghai, China
The last place I encountered peonies was during a planned visit to the Shanghai Botanical Garden in Shanghai, China. Although I had been happy to see what peonies I'd seen in China thus far, when I finally arrived to the peony garden inside the Shanghai Botanical Garden, I sorely wished it were spring!!! There were more tree peonies in their peony garden than I had ever seen in my life! The sign at the entrance to their peony garden claimed "10,000 tree peony plants, including 102 cultivars." What a site this garden must be to behold in springtime!


Sculpture in the Peony Garden
at the Shanghai Botanical Garden in Shanghai, China
The peonies at the Shanghai Botanical Garden were grown in mounds of loose, cultivated soil, which appeared to have been recently top-dressed with compost. The garden was made up of beautiful meandering stone pathways between the huge peony beds. The beds were edged by mounds of gorgeous green grass like perennials that gracefully overhung the solid stone block walls which lined the walkways. The light in the garden ranged from full sun to partial shade created by large, mature herbaceous trees interspersed and surrounding the garden. The foliage had also been removed from all of their peonies, quite a large job for a team of gardeners, I'm sure! The peony garden contained a beautiful statue of a woman or goddess and a traditional Chinese building and garden wall. I will have to visit there again sometime in April! :-)


Dormant Peonies at the Shanghai Botanical Garden in Shanghai, China

Tree Peony Garden at the Shanghai Botanical Garden in Shanghai, China

2013 American Peony Society Bulletin Article - Public Gardens Peony Donation Project

As promised here is the article I wrote for the December 2013 issue of the American Peony Society bulletin...

"When I first joined the American Peony Society board, I was asked to become the Publicity Chair for the APS. Unsure of the duties and responsibilities for the role, it seems I assumed by default a role that no one else claimed. This year my goal has been to get peonies planted at a local arboretum here in Raleigh, NC. The project is going well, and in the back of my mind I was hoping to continue the program, finding a new arboretum or public garden in need of peonies each year. The APS president, Dana Tretheway commented to me that I was doing a great job as a Publicity Chair working on this project to get peonies installed at a public garden. I guess I never thought of it as a part of my Publicity Chair duties. I just wanted to spread the love of peonies everywhere, but I guess that does kind of fit.

When I first approached Mark Weathington of the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, NC, he seemed a bit reluctant and not quite as enthusiastic as I’d hoped about the prospects of so many new and free (to him) peonies. After several email exchanges I was able to set up an in person meeting with him to discuss the possibility of a peony donation on behalf of the American Peony Society. Since I am a board member local to his garden, I was willing to donate several varieties myself, and wanted to ensure the project would be a success.


The JC Raulston Arboretum
When I met Mark in person at the JC Raulston Arboretum, we got along fabulously, and after our discussion he seemed much more excited about the prospects of a large peony donation to his garden. The mission of his Arboretum is to educate the public on varieties of plants that perform well in the garden that they may have not have seen or been introduced to before. I thought that was perfect and informed him of the American Peony Society’s Award of Landscape Merit program which selects peonies “chosen for superior ornamental value, overall appearance in the landscape and throughout the growing season, and reliable performance across North America”.

Mark was quite excited to hear about this APS award and didn’t realize we had such a program. I also talked with him about our Gold Medal selections, and we discussed how and where these peonies might fit into his landscape. There are several different garden sections or rooms at the JC Raulston Arboretum, and Mark seemed to be interested in trying to fit peonies in all of them. He inquired about Itoh intersectional peonies since he’d heard how these were the latest and greatest peonies. However he did not have any in his collection. There is an Asian Valley garden that he was interested in adding some Asian tree peony cultivars and a rock garden that he wanted to add rock garden peonies too. For someone who didn’t have very many types of peonies currently represented at his garden, he sure was interested in all the different type of peonies.

After walking the garden together, I believe we only found 5 different types of peonies in the garden. After our meeting I asked Mark how many peonies he could plant if the APS board members were able to donate peonies for him. He said he could plant 40 or 50! Wow, that was great news! So off I went to solicit donations for the JC Raulston Arboretum. With the collaborative effort and good will of several APS members and a local plant nursery, we were able to donate over 40 peony varieties to him including APS Award of Landscape Merit selections, APS Gold Medal selections, Itoh Intersectional varieties, and several herbaceous peonies that would grow exceptionally well in North Carolina.

I’d like to thank the following donors for all of their help with this year’s Public Gardens Peony Donation Project: Adelman Peony Gardens, Adriana Feng, Homewood Nursery, Hollingsworth Peonies, Klehm’s Song Sparrow, and Jim & Lore Sampson of Rarity Gardens. I’m looking forward to seeing all of the peonies in bloom, and sharing those blooms with everyone! I’m also looking forward to the next Public Garden Peony Donation Project! :-)"

Since the publication of this article, the JC Raulston Arboretum has received an additional donation from Cricket Hill Garden. So on behalf of myself and the American Peony Society, I'd also like to add our thanks and appreciation to Cricket Hill Garden as well!

2013 Questions - Forcing Dormancy in Warm Climate

I received this question from Chris in Zone 10:
"I live in the city of San Francisco and grow peonies in containers on our sunny south facing patio. Have had a great deal of success with blooming. Many varieties have done well.... both herbaceous and tree. However, this year, the peonies won't go to sleep like they are supposed to. I cut down the leaves and stalks of the herbaceous and cut the leaves off all the tree peonies three weeks ago. Now, the red eyebuds are swelling and many are putting out new growth and leaves in late October. It is in the high 40s at night, but we won't get into the 30s in the City. My question is what to do. Should I let them grow? Or prune and force them into dormancy... if possible? This did not happen last year, and the peonies came out in mid January. Thanks for any advice you could share."

Tree Peony 'Dou Lu'	Peony 'Raspberry Sundae'

My concern would be that after you trim the foliage, more would start to grow provided the temps are the same or warmer.

In future years I would recommend leaving the foliage on a lot longer into the late fall/ early winter which should help prevent this premature leafing out. From your email it sounds like you cut back the foliage in early October which is much too early for your growing zone 10b. I am in growing zone 7b, and about half of my peonies that are planted in the ground here at this time of year (early November) still have their foliage. So next year I would recommend waiting until at least the beginning of December or even late December to cut back the foliage in your growing zone. I know the foliage will probably start to look quite ratty, but if it can die back naturally it is best to let it attempt to do so. Also the fall season is when the plant is absorbing the nutrients in the leaves back into its roots. So the longer you can leave the foliage on the peony during this time, the better.

As for this year's early leaf out, I cannot say what will be the best for the plant in the long run. However if the leafing out is not too much, you may attempt to trim the foliage to force the plant into dormancy, but if you select this method I would recommend some other aids in helping to force this dormancy. Do you have a dark, cool place in your home, perhaps a garage or basement? If so you may want to move the potted peonies to a location such as this to limit the temperature and light the plants receive. Also I've heard of other growers in CA putting ice on top of their peonies to simulate a winter chill. This may be another option for you. However I'm not sure how long you would need to maintain an ice covering. So this may be something you'd want to research.

If the leafing out has already developed into a large growth, you may just want to leave the plants as is this year (as long as there is no danger of frost). If for some reason you do get some freezing weather, you'd want to bring the pots in overnight only. Sometimes it is best to let Mother Nature do her own thing. I have ordered some peonies from vendors in cooler areas then mine, and had the peonies leaf out in late fall. I usually just leave them as is. Since I do have frost here in the winter, any shoots that have leafed out will die back when we get a cold frost. This does seem to set the plant back a little in terms of growth and development, but they do always seem to survive. They may just take a little longer to get established. Since you don't usually have any danger of frost, the foliage may grow fine for you.

Good luck with your potted peonies this winter. Please keep me posted on what you decide to do with them and how they fare in the spring! :-)

2013 State Fair Flower Show Ribbons, No Peonies

I was excited to enter the NC State Fair Flower Show this year. I hadn't entered since 2010, my first year. I won 3 3rd place ribbons that year. I researched suggestions for keeping flowers from wilting and groomed all of my specimens. So I was hoping for a better outcome this year as far as ribbons, and I must say I wasn't disappointed. I took home 3 1st place ribbons and 1 2nd place ribbon. Nice! It makes me want to do it again. The only bad thing is I can't show any peonies since it is the totally wrong season. So now with a little more flower show experience under my belt, it makes me want to enter the American Peony Society flower show at the 2014 APS Convention. Too bad I will miss the convention next year. Maybe 2015 will be the first year I can enter the peony competition! :)
NC State Fair 1st Place Blue and 2nd Place Red Ribbons

2013 Cheap Versus Expensive Tree Peonies

I guess time and again, when it comes to peonies, just about like everything else, you get what you pay for. I was pleased when I received my first official tree peony order from Tree Peony Garden, a peony grower in the US who focuses mainly on tree peonies. Not only were these tree peonies much more expensive, they were much, much larger and fresher than the cheaper Tree Peonies from China I purchased through Ali Express. The tree peonies I ordered from Tree Peony Garden are 'High Noon', 'Kamatafuji', and 'Li Yuan Chun 李园春'. Peony 'High Noon' is an American tree peony cultivar and an APS Gold Medal Winner in 1989, while Peony 'Kamatafuji' is a Japanese tree peony cultivar, and 'Li Yuan Chun 李园春' is a Chinese tree peony cultivar. While I ordered 2 year old tree peony plants for all three of these cultivars, it looks like they sent me a much larger and older specimen of the center one in the photo (Peony 'Li Yuan Chun 李园春'). Perhaps they ran out of 2 year old tree peonies in this variety. It was so huge I was tempted to split it in half, with three large branches and lots of roots! However I decided to let it grow as it, hoping to get a nice blossom from it in the spring. :-) I am looking forward to growing all three of these tree peonies which represent different cultures and regions of important tree peony growers and climates from different parts of the world.
Tree Peony Roots from Tree Peony Garden