Sunday, June 2, 2013

Last of the Tree Peonies

My tree peonies are just winding down. This year the bright 'Luoyang Hong' bloomed first (see my post from last week):

Tree peony 'Luoyang Hong'
About a week later my white and dark red ones began blooming. I was hoping they would all bloom together in one glorious tree peony symphony, but oh well. The white one, 'Xiang Yu' (Fragrant Jade) did at least bloom with this lovely dwarf crested iris by its side:

Tree peony 'Xiang Yu' and iris cristata
In this next photo you can see the red-violet carpels and filaments in the interior of 'Xiang Yu' a bit better. When the plant is older, the flowers will supposedly be fully double, which I guess means the interior will not be as visible. That actually makes me somewhat sad as I think the red and gold center is so striking.

Tree peony 'Xiang Yu'
Just as the dark red tree peony began to open, we had several successive days of heavy rain. The petals got a bit gummy and some of the flowers had trouble opening. Here are some photos I managed to take between rainshowers:

Tree peony 'Wu Jin Yao Hui' (Glittering Black Gold)
I love the deep maroon color of this one, contrasted wtih the gold stamens in the interior.

Tree peony 'Wu Jin Yao Hui'
Farewell until next year, tree peonies! Next it is the herbaceous peonies' turn to bloom...

10 comments:

  1. I can't believe your tree peonies are that much ahead of us since I believe you are only about 70 miles south of here... ours are just beginning... you have some lovely cultivars! Larry

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    1. Thanks Larry! I have Chinese tree peonies, which generally bloom about a week earlier than the Japanese varieties (I think that's what you have). That might partially explain the bloom time discrepancy too. I'll be checking out your amazing collection now!

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  2. It depends on the species too. I'm finding that some can flower in early May while others won't flower until well into June.

    Now is about the right time to be injuring some stems for propagation of tree peony cuttings if you intend on producing more plants.

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    1. Thanks for the info Steve - I only wish I had room to propagate my own tree peonies! That would be a dream come true for me. I'll just have to enjoy your experiments.

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  3. The deep maroon colour of the 'Wu Jan Yao Hui' is so beautiful. Our 2 tree peonies flowered just when we were on holidays in May. When we came back the red one still had some flowers, but the flowers of the white one were gone, also damaged by wind and rain.

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    1. So sad to miss the tree peony bloom! I would plan my vacation around them :-) At least you got to see the red one - and next year there will be even more flowers for sure.

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  4. Rebecca, wonderful tree peonies! I love most'Wu Jin Yao Hui', what a color!
    Seemed to me mine won't bloom this year, don't know why.
    Happy gardening!

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    1. Hi Nadezda, I don't know how old yours are but they do take a while to start blooming. Most tree peonies will bloom 5 years after being grafted or divided, but it can range from 3-7 years! It takes great patience to enjoy tree peonies...

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  5. WOW! Your tree peonies are fabulous! All fo them!

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    1. Tree peonies are my favorite plants for sure!

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