Since the one I like has the wrong name is will suggest Fen Dan Bai or Phoenix White or P. osti. Three names for the same plant.

I am including a link to Carsten's website. If you can not find a favorite there you have a definate problem.

Here is a link that might be useful: Carsten's house of joy

Come on people. Just because I post my likes do not mean that you should not post your favorite. Give this poster something to chose from.

Of course that does not mean every thing on Carsten's site I want. Many are no longer available in commerce but may be lurking in someones garden. The lurker peonies should be a separate thread from this one.

Well, you did not designate tree or herbaceous. For a tree, Kamada Fugi. Glowing Raspberry Rose for the other.

I don't have a lot, but my fave so far is "Golly" - you might want to re-post this question during blooming season, as a lot of people are on this forum then. Sue
{{gwi:654222}}

One of my favorites is Scarlet O'Hara because there is no staking required. Also an eye-catching color which I needed for this border seen from the road.

I also like Coral Charm, again because I don't have to stake it. I like the way the flowers change color as they age. Smells awful though!

I haven't really kept track of the names of my tree peonies but I really do like a crisp white tree peony to brighten up a shady spot.

FESTIVA MAXIMA!

I dont have any yet but i have a list of what i love lolol
May Lilac is on the top lo
cassie

I notice that some of you require that your favorite peony to not flop. That is a requirement for me too. I would have to say my favorite herbaceous is Rozella. I do like for my peonies to be erect and not flop. I still tend toward the double peonies but most are horrible about laying on the ground after a rain. Rozella is very double, a good size but still does not flop.

I am trying to think of which tree peony is my favorite. My problem here is they are are really good as long as they bloom well. I would say one of my favorite japanese tree peonies is Shin Kamada Nishiki, a lavender with a large bloom and high petal count.

Double flowering fern leave

Frank,

I agree, the double flowering fernleaf peony is awesome. There is nothing better that brightens up the very early spring. The flowers are really striking. You can see the lipstick red blooms from some distance. The fernleaf photo below is past its prime but the flowers were nice and large.

The foliage of the double form is finer than the single form, almost feathery. I have not seen any of my double fernleafs set any seed. I got a good crop of seeds last fall from my red single ferns. I got a few seeds from the pink form also. I have them potted up and hope to see some growth this spring.

I am still trying to find a white flowering fernleaf peony.

Leon

Leon,

Those double fern leaf flowers are gorgeous. I would love for mine to bloom, but I don't think I've found the right microclimate for them yet. I've had them in full sun for a couple of years now, but they've barely survived and not really increased much. The afternoon sun seems to dry them to a crisp by mid summer. So I took one piece last year and put it near my deck. I'm hoping the additional shade and moisture will be more to their liking.

Your lavender tree peony is nice too. I need to come visit your garden!

I was wondering if someone was masquerading as peonyman since I didn't see the bold blue font on your earlier post. :)

Amulet,

Sorry but I forgot to set my font before I posted that first message.

Fern leaf peonies do exceptionally well for me. Most people in this area have trouble with it. I think I have determined it needs and when they are happy they do grow well. Even a very small division will bloom in 3 years and a normal division will easily divide in about 3 years. I grow mine in several locations, full sun, partial shade and some at the base of a retaining wall that completely shades from about noon to sunset. They all do pretty good but I notice the ones at the base of the retaining wall holds it green foliage longer. I think this is due to two factors. The afternoon sun is not drying the foliage and the location at the base of the retaining will offers more constant moisture for the plants.

However, I think the real trick to growing fern-leaf peonies is drainage. Mine are in raised garden beds that contain very porous soil with lots of sand. The one thing that will set back or kill a fern-leaf peony quicker than anything is wet feet during the winter. The beds are also very fertile with lots of incorporated compost. Dont worry about the raised bed causing the plant to be exposed to colder winter temps. Paeonia tenuifolia can take extreme winter cold.

I think that I could probably have 50 plants in just a few years from a single plant. I have 4 different fernleaf types, single red, single pink, double red and then one that came from Japan called Itobah. I don't think Itobah is a species plant, it does not set seed for me. It is very similar to the species in other ways, the foliage is not nearly as coarse as any of the hybrids. Rarely I get an occasional seed from the double form but I have never gotten one to sprout.

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Double Fernleaf

Kate when you divide your Scarlet plant it where the plant is at least shaded in the afternoon. All day if possible. The reds because of the darkness of the flowers absorb heat. The heat causes the flowers to fade and drop sooner than other colors.

A dappled shade such as a lattice works fine with the reds.

How about posting some good sources to purchase these beauties?

Around here I can only ever find those 1 eyed box/bag deals at a box store or the local greenhouse has got a plant for $40.

Leon,

Thanks for the fernleaf growing information. I think you may be onto something with the consistent moisture. That's what I'm hoping will help my division as well. If I can ever get this one to grow well, I would like to look into more varieties. I have several of Khlem's rock garden peonies, some of which seem to be fernleaf hybrids, but none of them have bloomed for me yet. Maybe this year. How do you normally attempt to sprout your fernleaf peony seeds?

Amulet,

In the past I have attempted to get peony seeds to germinate by bagging them in peat moss as soon as the carpels begin to open, then after they get some root growth refrigerate them through the winter. I have had mixed results with this, I think my primary problem is keeping them evenly moist.

This is the first year I have tried any P. tenuifolia seeds. I planted the fresh seeds in 2 gallon pots and I left the pots outside to the natural climate until it began to get cold about the end of November. They are spending the winter in my garage. It gets cold in there but generally does not get much below freezing. I will pull them out in early spring after the chance of a hard freeze has passed.

I am just keeping my fingers crossed.

Leon

Last year I got 12 tenuifolia to root but they died while in the refrigerator.i either waited to long to bag them or they spag.moss was to moist.I ordered more seed from the APS seed sale just posted today and will try again.I had no problem getting around 200 seedlings from lactifloria seeds which I grew under grow lights in basement this past year.many are now individually potted in 6"by6" pots and are in an unheated greenhouse here in Maine.can't wait to see how they look this spring.I plan on putting them out in rows this spring.

Minot, thanks for letting us know that the 2010 aps sdp is now posted.

minotpeonies,

I am wondering if bagging P. tenuifolia may be the wrong way to germinate them. P. tenuifolia are not hypogeal like most of the other peonies are, they are epigeal. In other words the cotyledons of the germinating Paeonia tenuifolia seed expand, throw off the seed shell and become photosynthetic above the ground. Seed of other species stay inside the seed shell and remain non-photosynthetic and below ground. This being said I really don't know if the species has the multistage germination that others have but it stands to reason that it would not be multistage and would not need the refrigeration after the initial root growth. That is the reason I am trying them in pots of soil for my first time. I think they may just begin to sprout and come on up. Anyone here had any experience with these seed and can give some first hand information?

Leon

Here is a link that might be useful: Nearly every thing about Paeonia tenuifolia species.

This year I'll try outdoor germination with the tenuifolia maybe should do the same with anomala and veitchi.Last year veitchi also died on me while all my lactiflora peonies and tree peonies germinated great.

Daylilyluver,
I purchased my "Golly" at Adelman Peony Garden - their website is peonyparadise.com.

maifleur--thanks for the advice on how to protect my Scarlet O'Hara from fading in the sun. Unfortunately, Scarlet was planted in full sun many, many years ago, and since then, every available space in the garden has been filled with other plants, so unless something kicks the bucket, I do not have such options available. But I will keep your excellent suggestion in mind--just in case.

Kate

Festiva Maxima, Rose Crystal, which is a Saunders peony, fern leaf makes me feel good to look at. Interested in looking at pictures of peonies, Blossom Hill Nursery is great.

Tree Peonies; Japanese: Yatsuka Jishi
Tree Peonies; Chinese: Yan Long Zi Zhu Pan
Tree Peonies; Hybrids: Athena

Herbaceous Peonies, Lactiflora: Elsa Sass
Herbaceous Peonies, Hybrid: Red Charm

Interspecies: toss-up: Bartzella/Hillary

And, IF limited to a single peony of any variety, Japanese Tree Peony Taiyo (the sun). It's a stout, erect plant with good vigor that produces large RED, upward-facing blooms with excellent reliability, makes plenty of new wood each year rapidly becoming a nice sized bush, and it tolerates from full sun to semi-deep shade. Moreover, it's common in trade so you can buy it quite cheaply, and the blooms are sturdy enough to withstand cutting and carrying all the way to SF California where it won't grow and where my sister misses it!

Discovered this place at the Philly Flower Show.

Love the pictures folks!

Here is a link that might be useful: Peonys Envy