It can depend on the species and growing conditions, but the following thread I linked have my kinshi tree peony growing through 4 seasons. It made 1 flower on year 3, and 7 flowers for year 4.

If you don't count the rockii peonies with the dark centers as multicolor, I only have 3 tree peony species that are multicolor in kinkaku, Hua Er Qiao, and Ri Yue Tong Hui. There are a few grafts off each, but I don't know if they are viable until next spring.

Here is a link that might be useful: 4 year kinshi peony progression

It isn't a question of 'how old will I be?' it is 'will I be able to care for these gardens'. I am going to assume that I will be fit and able for another ten years at least so I am going to give the tree peonies a try.

Thanks for the uplift!

It depends on the age of tree peonies that you receive. If you get a young root like a 1 yr or 2 yrs old, then it will take the plant longer to bloom. If you are able to get a division or an older grafted plant, then it should not take long to bloom. As far as care, the hardest part will be selecting the proper location and preparing and amending the soil of the planting hole.

I think you'll find the tree peonies to be lower maintenance than your herbaceous, Ryse Ryse. They have to be planted deeper if they're grafted on herbaceous root stock and you'll need to provide weed protection but you won't have to cut back dead stems and foliage every year, only deadhead the spent blooms if you want them to look tidier. They do grow slower or maybe it's just the customary size you get for the price is smaller...a 3-5 eye herbaceous division will typically bloom the following spring or maybe a 1 year wait where a 1-2 year old grafted tree peony will take 3-4 years to bloom. That's a generalization, I only have 1 type large enough to bloom so am probably the least experienced with tree peonies that has replied to your post. There are several sellers that advertise more mature plants for sale but you'll pay a hefty premium for them. I haven't ordered from this site but have seen posts from other members that say they're a good source and they say their Select size will typically bloom 1st or 2nd spring.

Here is a link that might be useful: Solaris Farms Tree Peony Catalog

Age is in the mind. Yesterday I re potted up 5 peonies I started from Costco boxed roots last year. Today I planted three from last year in the garden. Last week I entered into an agreement with a new peony grower in a neighboring town to participate in "peony trials', with him supplying the roots. When I met him he never asked how old I was, so I never mentioned I was 85. Al

It depends on how much money you want to spend. If you bought a 4-6 years old tree peony in the fall, you can have flowers next spring. If you bought a 1-2 years old tree peony, it will take 2-3 years to get the flower. You should have shimanishiki, the most famous bi-color tree peony.