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alexunder

Peonies to buy?

AlexUnder
9 years ago

I am considering what kind of peonies I want to grow in near future and when I'll retire. Would love to hear from people who already tried them. Want something with good fragrance, minimum of staking, not very fussy for the first batch. Also, how difficult are they going to be established in new place if I have to move in 4 - 5 years time.

Red Charm ( as I can understand no fragrance ), Etched Salmon ( can someone tell me more about fragrance, as I've heard that some of Coral peonies have fishy smell - not sure about this one ), Florence Nicholls ( staking ?), Miss America. I am also considering Raspberry Charm, Myrtle Gentry, Bowl of Cream, Gardenia, La France ( staking?), Luetta Pfeiffer, Kelways Glorious.

Long-term - 5-10 years - is Old Faithful ( no fragrance ?), Lemon Chiffon and Pastelegance.

Comments (7)

  • lizbest1
    9 years ago

    Hi AlexUnder! I have several of the peonies you mentioned but haven't really paid attention to smell, sorry. I tend to cut flowers for inside but never paid attention to individual flower scents as long--they're so beautiful they'd have to smell AWFUL for me not to display them! I can tell you all of the corals I have, including Etched Salmon, stand up well on their own, no staking needed. Etched Salmon is a new one, just bloomed the 1st time after being planted fall 2013, and only had 1 bloom. It was fairly full but probably not as big as it will be after settling in but didn't droop at all. Raspberry Charm I can say doesn't need to be staked here, either. We have very late snows here in CO, actually snowed on Mother's Day last spring, and both of those did fine even after being covered with a heavy blanket of wet snow.

    As far as moving them in 4-5 years, most would be ready to divide by then, anyway. The best time to divide is in the fall but they can be moved pretty much anytime, you just need to treat them like any other perennial if they're already growing. I wouldn't divide them after they start growing in the spring unless it was absolutely necessary, it will set them back some but they would probably survive it. They would need extra care and more water/shade than if divided/replanted in the fall as dormant roots.

    There are several members of this forum that do a wonderful job posting pictures and comments about their peonies in the spring. If I were you I'd watch for those posts--they normally start in March when the first growth is seen and last through July or so when those of us in the colder zones have our last flowers. Ask questions of those you see, we're all eager to give answers! Good luck with deciding which ones to plant!

  • lizbest1
    9 years ago

    Forgot to say I picked up Pastelegence and Lemon Chiffon last fall, very anxious and excited to see how they do. I'll absolutely post pictures if one or both bloom! I saw both at the APS convention last spring and fell in LOVE!

  • AlexUnder
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Hi LizinElizabeth, thanks for your input. Would love to see your pictures of Pastelegance and Lemon Chiffon! I've heard that Etched Salmon is not easy to divide - did you find the root somehow different from others when you received it?

  • lizbest1
    9 years ago

    Not that I noticed but I ordered around 100 peonies that fall. Got it from Pure Peonies fall 2013, found a picture that I took of the root before planting.

  • KarenPA_6b
    9 years ago

    Wow, that is a really nice root, Liz I can see why it maybe hard to divide the root if the eyes are so closely clustered.

    AlexUnder, the only ones on your list that I grow are Red Charm, Miss America, Gardenia, and Myrtle Gentry. I have not had a flower from MG so I cannot tell you about its scent or floppiness. I can tell you that MA does not flop and Red Charm and Gardenia are pretty sturdy too but may have a hard time standing up to a strong storm. None of these three have scents that are memorable to me. Either the scents are very mild or the scents are neither very good or very bad. I can definitely tell you that Coral Charm and Pink Hawaiian Coral smell very bad.

  • lizbest1
    9 years ago

    I found that I had better luck dividing Itohs with a coping saw since the blade is very fine and the frame is movable enough to keep out of the way. I'd probably try the same thing on Etched Salmon for the greater control rather than just the shovel edge that I use on most of my herbaceous peonies.

  • AlexUnder
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks! Interesting root to say at least... Now I can understand why those fetch premium prices...Probably not so easy to divide commercially.