2014 Peony Blooms - Early - Week 2

With warmer temperatures this week (average high of 75°), more peony varieties began to open. The second tree peony to bloom, Peony 'Li Yuan Chun', bloomed this week. Each year I find myself more and more enamored with Peony 'Roy Pehrson's Best Yellow'. This peony really has beautiful large, light green foliage, blooms with pale yellow petals and sunny centers, and just an awesome presence in the early spring garden. Peony 'Lustrous' has a great volume of lipstick red petals in a semi-double fashion, and always reminds me of a movie star. Peony 'Sweet May' is just that, sweet! Even though this peony blooms earlier than May for me here in my Southern Peony garden, the small, light pink petals surround a huge center of sunny yellow stamens that are very sweet indeed! Please enjoy some of my favorite week 2 peony blooms...

Tree Peony 'Li Yuan Chun'	Peony 'Roy Pehrson's Best Yellow'
Peony 'Lustrous'	Peony 'Sweet May'

2014 Peony Blooms - Very Early - Week 1

My first peony blooms of the season were much anticipated this year as I wondered when the tree peonies that were newly planted last fall would bloom. Their buds swelled for weeks as I watched them with excitement, wondering if they would open before the herbaceous peonies. However herbaceous Peony 'Early Scout' was once again the front runner in the peony bloom race this year. Also Peony 'Halcyon' was a very early surprise that bloomed for me for the first time this year. It is always nice to expand the selection of Week 1 peony blooms. Tree Peony 'Fragrant Jade' was the first of my newly planted tree peonies to bloom. Peony 'Firelight' is always an early bloomer and such a delight! Here are some of my favorite blooms pictures from my peony blooms week 1. Enjoy!

Peony 'Early Scout'	Peony 'Halcyon'
Tree Peony 'Fragrant Jade'	Peony 'Firelight'

2014 First Tree Peony Bloom Ever! Peony 'Fragrant Jade'

Tree Peony 'Fragrant Jade' (Xiang Yu) in the Rain
Yay! The first tree peony to ever bloom in my garden bloomed for the first time yesterday. It was Peony 'Fragrant Jade' (Xiang Yu). I am so excited to see how these tree peonies I've planted grow and develop over time. The first bloom on this plant was a semi-double bloom. I suspect as the tree peony matures the blooms will develop into their more fully double blossom. The first day it bloomed, it was raining. So I got another picture of it today. Perhaps the flower is as fragrant as it is named. It seems a bumble bee was so entranced by its fragrance, it never left the blossom and lived its final moments in the fluffiness of the soft white petals. I tried to sample its fragrance myself, but I'm afraid the previous days' rain may have washed away most of the scent. I guess I'll wait for the next bloom, as there is one more bud on this tree peony!
Tree Peony 'Fragrant Jade' (Xiang Yu) with Bumble Bee

2014 First Spring Peony Bloom - Peony 'Early Sout'

Peony 'Early Scout' in Bud
This peony has once again made its way out of the ground and produced a bloom long before any other peony in my garden. This is a reliable plant, and the vibrant red is just so gorgeous. Peony 'Early Scout' bloomed today on April 12th to once again be the first peony to bloom in my garden. It was also the first to bloom last year, 2013 First Bloom of the Year - Peony 'Early Scout'! This very early, low-growing peony even beat out my newly planted tree peonies, a couple of which have big, fat buds just waiting to open. Tree peonies are supposed to bloom earlier than herbaceous peonies. So I wasn't sure exactly when in my herbaceous bloom period they would actually bloom. I usually have about 7 weeks of peony bloom here. So it seems like the tree peonies will probably overlap with the early herbaceous peony bloom period. I hope spring is starting in your garden too! :-)
Peony 'Early Scout' in Bloom

2014 Questions - Transplanting Peonies in the Spring

I received this question from Bahiyyah in zone 7:
"Hello, I love your blog, I have a question for you. I know transplanting in the spring is not best, but I had no choice. Now I have over 100 peonies to replant. Some are very young with only 3-5 eyes. I know to plant those whole. But what about the ones that have large root masses, but only 3 eyes showing. Is it problematic to replant those whole? I remember reading that once dug up peonies prefer to be split to grow properly. Should I trim some root off those. For a visual imagine 8 big juice carrot sized roots, with only three tiny eyes. Also, do you have any tips for soil amending when planting? I have access to leaf mulch, wood chips, well aged horse manure, worm compost and regular compost. Thank you for any and all advice you can offer"

Thank you for such a nice compliment! You are correct in stating that spring is not the ideal season to transplant peonies. Fall is the best season for moving and dividing peonies. However spring is much better than summer, especially if the peonies have not yet sprouted (which is what it sounds like you are describing when you mention that your peonies have eyes - instead of foliage growth). You may notice some reduction in blooms this year, but provided these peonies are replanted in a good location with plenty of sun and nice soil, they should recover nicely. If any of your peonies had enough stems last year to divide (at least 7-8 stems), then you can go ahead and divide those peonies. However if your peonies didn't have very many stems last year and only have 3 eyes with large roots, I would not divide those peonies. Also it isn't necessary to remove any of the storage roots before planting unless you feel need to remove them for some other reason (ex. unwieldy for planting, unmanageable for transporting, diseased, etc.)

As far as soil amendments, I would recommend the leaf mulch and compost and mixing it well into the soil. The horse manure could also be used, but it definitely shouldn't be applied directly to the roots or crown of the plant. The wood chips could be used as a mulch/top dressing only to prevent weed growth. However it is not recommended to mix these into the planting hole, as they can inhibit the peony root's access to nitrogen.