2020 Tree Peony Seeds from Luoyang, China Grow!!

Tree Peony Seedling #2 on 3/9
I was beginning to give up on those tree peony seeds from China, 2018 Planting Tree Peony Seeds from Luoyang China, but it looks like they are starting to germinate this year! I stared at some empty dirt and kept picking weeds out of the area last year hoping to find a sprout, but never did. After not seeing anything pop up yet this year, I thought there was no hope for them this year, until I saw a seedling pop up in that area a week or so ago. Even then I was suspicious whether that seedling came from one of the seeds from China or just some random lost or rogue seed in the bed. When I looked for that first seed a few days later the bed was empty - no seedling. I began to wonder whether some underground (or above ground?) critter got the roots and/or seedling. I imagined some animal just sucking it underground, since the tree peony seedling was nowhere in sight.


Tree Peony Seedling #1 on 3/9
After spending some time pulling some miniature weeds from the seedling bed, I finally discovered that first seedling (Tree Peony Seedling #1 pictured above). As you can see it was either killed by some low overnight temperatures (which we did experience) or some kind of fungal wilt. The cold temperatures can also cause the wilt. So it is really hard to say what the culprit was in this case (but some corroborating evidence may exist for the cold theory, as I've noticed some selected tips of other new plants with burnt - dried & blackened - tips). So I think this tree peony seedling may have experienced cold burn/freeze damage. That's very sad. This is the first year this peony tried to grow a leaf, and it got knocked down. I don't think this one will be able to come back next year. I guess that is just part of nature's selection process.


Tree Peony Seedling Signs

Tree Peony Seedling #2 on 3/12
I guess you could say the biggest fail with these seeds are the signs. I took a lot of time to figure out how to plant these seeds with their signs since the peonies I purchased had no names on the flower only pictures. I even purchased some special Black & Decker UV plastic laminate to laminate them with. As you can see that laminate was not really UV protected. Too bad about the false advertising on those laminating sheets. These signs didn't even last 1 full year before fading. The flowers photos were all so beautiful and colorful when I put them on there. Oh well, at least I took a photo of them and scanned them into the computer before I put them outside in the sun to fade! LOL


Tree Peony Seedling #3 with Signs
These tree peony seedlings are definitely having some challenges. As you can see Tree Peony Seedling #3 (pictured below) looks like it had 2 tiny stems originally, and one of them looks like it has already been bitten off. I hope some of these Chinese tree peony seedlings make it through Mother Nature's wrath into adulthood in a few years, so that I may see their beautiful blossoms. I'm just hoping that they aren't all single, white Paeonia ostii seeds/seedlings. Only time will tell...


Tree Peony Seedling #3

2020 Peony Experiments - Adventitious Roots Results, Peony 'Grace Root'

Peony 'Grace Root' Sign
Well, I guess you could say this Experiment is a failure. It's been almost 5 years since I planted those Peony 'Grace Root' root tips, 2015 Peony Experiments - Planting Adventitious Roots, and nothing has grown from them. Maybe next time I will try actually cutting pieces close to the crown of the plant and/or cutting larger pieces. The root tips I planted for this experiment were just small pieces that happened to break off from the Peony 'Grace Root' plant when I was digging it to be divided (so that I could donate a root to a local arboretum). I can also say with confidence that I did not pay those root pieces any special attention - no watering, no fertilizing, no nothing - just time. Upon digging in the soil I found no traces of those root pieces either. So I'm guessing they dried up and disintegrated. Oh well, on to the next!


Peony 'Grace Root' Adventitious Root Test Bed

2020 Bye Bye Imposter Itohs, Hello Favorite Intersectional Peonies!!

Intersectional Peony 'Yumi' in Japanese Garden
I got tired of every year hoping the intersectional peonies I had right outside my back door were going to be beautiful intersectional peony plants filled with lush, full double blossoms. They were supposed to be Intersectional Peony 'Impossible Dream' and Intersectional Peony 'Yumi'. Both were imposters, intersectional peonies - they were, but the named cultivars they claimed to be - they were not. I purchased both of them from the same seller on Ebay, atskor8, 2018 Ebay Peony Seller Reviews, and they both turned out to be mostly single, yellow intersectional peonies with a very small number of flowers of small size and unimpressive qualities. It was especially disappointing since I had these planted in some of the most prime real estate in the garden, with partially protected, mostly moist, sunny locations!


Intersectional Peony 'Yumi'
Every year I keep thinking that I've already ripped out the imposters and replaced them with "real" cultivars, and every spring I am disappointed again. So this year before they bloomed, I finally remembered that I still needed to take those lame peonies out of my best spots and put in something good! I had already ordered a replacement for Intersectional Peony 'Yumi' from a different vendor on Ebay in 2016, garden*breeze, whose product turned out to be authentic. So I just needed to get rid of that imposter, which ended up in the compost pile, and put the real one in its place. Easy peasy.


Intersectional Peony 'Bartzella' in Deck Garden
As for the imposter Intersectional Peony 'Impossible Dream', that one too went to the compost pile. In keeping with the yellow theme in that area, I decided to put a division of Intersectional Peony 'Bartzella' in its place. Intersectional Peony 'Bartzella' really is one of the best intersectional peonies there is. It is an APS Gold Medal Winner and has also been awarded the APS Award of Landscape Merit. It is also a Southern Peony Best Performer and consistently puts on a show every year, 2012 Peony 'Bartzella' Best Performer - Week 5. I am excited to see both of these gorgeous intersectional peonies take off in their new spots!!!


Intersectional Peony 'Bartzella'

2020 Intersectional Peony 'Scrumdidleyumptious' Arrives from K. Van Bourgondien

Intersectional Peony 'Scrumdidleyumptious' Arrives
from K. Van Bourgondien
Remember that order I placed last month for another try at Intersectional Peony 'Scrumdidleyumptious'? 2020 Intersectional Peony 'Scrumdidleyumptious' - Here We Go Again!! Well, it actually arrived last week. That was really fast. It actually arrived one week to the day after placing the order. Unlike the intersectional peonies I ordered from Spring Hill Nursery, 2020 Intersectional Peony 'Duchesse de Lorraine' Arrives from Spring Hill Nursery, this peony was not potted, growing, and carefully packed. It was bagged in a vented plastic bag containing peat moss and shipped in the box with a couple of air bubbles to minimize damage and breakage in transit. It's a little disappointing in comparison. However this root was much cheaper. Hopefully the savings in price is from the treatment and presentation of the plant and not the authenticity this time!


Intersectional Peony 'Scrumdidleyumptious' Bagged
I was able to get the root planted quickly, and I decided to plant it right next to one of the fake ones I received from Tulip World, 2019 'Scrumdidleyumptious' Intersectional Peony Update, for comparison purposes. It will be interesting to see how the foliage compares when they are both up and growing. I hope this one wakes up soon, as it looks like it has been storage perhaps. I'm also hoping this one is the real thing. The root I got this time from K. Van Bourgondien looks much different that the roots I got from Tulip World, 2018 Intersectional Peony 'Scrumdidleyumptious' Arrives. Here's hoping it's correct!!! :-)


Intersectional Peony 'Scrumdidleyumptious' Bagged

2020 Intersectional Peony 'Duchesse de Lorraine' Arrives from Spring Hill Nursery

Intersectional Peony 'Duchesse de Lorraine' Arrives
My order of Intersectional Peony 'Duchesse de Lorraine' arrived this week from Spring Hill Nursery. The plants arrived well packaged and quite safe from spills and accidents just as they did the last time I placed an intersectional peony order with Spring Hill Nursery, 2019 Spring Hill Nursery Peony Order Arrives. Each peony is potted and growing in a small pot. The pots are bagged and twist tied, and then securely attached to cardboard boxes with viewing panes that are wrapped in an additional layer of shrink wrapped plastic. Last year the intersectional peonies I ordered had foliage visible in those viewing panes, while the Intersectional Peony 'Duchesse de Lorraine' plants I ordered this year did not.


Intersectional Peony 'Duchesse de Lorraine' Order Arrives

Intersectional Peony 'Duchesse de Lorraine' Potted and Bagged
The big difference may be the timing of the order. Last year I received my order in mid April and the peonies were fully leafed out, which made it easy to identify the foliage as intersectional. This year I received my order in early March, and the peonies have not yet leafed out, which makes them a bit harder to verify as intersectional. However one of the two peonies received has started to break dormancy, as the bud has visibly opened, and a tiny leaflet has emerged. This tiny leaflet does appear to be very tree peony like in appearance, which leads me to believe these are likely intersectional peonies. I'd like to verify the full foliage once it emerges to make the final determination. So I'll keep you posted as the peony foliage continues to mature.


Intersectional Peony 'Duchesse de Lorraine' Breaking Dormancy

Intersectional Peony 'Duchesse de Lorraine' Still Dormant