Last year, I planted peonies. I’d had a tree peony before this, but no regular herbaceous peonies. They’re beautiful flowers and my mom has gorgeous plants which have left me spoiled. We tried to split hers, but my dad and I both chickened out because we didn’t know what we were doing. Instead, I went to a garden center and bought some. This year, I’m going to have some flowers.
This is the first one to bloom. It’s a bit redder than it appears in the picture, but the flowers are absolutely gorgeous.
The whole plant
Fully open
Close up of that flower
A side shot of a different flower on the plant
Still opening
The flowers turned out even more beautiful than I was expecting. And you know what else is cool? How quickly they opened. I spent time in the yard yesterday, and while the blooms were big, they seemed days away from opening. Then I looked today and I was going OMG!
And this wasn’t the only surprise I had. My tree peony had a bloom open, too, and again, I thought it wouldn’t open for days more.
Tree peony
I can’t wait until the other peonies bloom, although they seem a bit farther off. There are also a few peonies that won’t have flowers at all this year. Maybe next, though. I can hope, right?
How lovely! We inherited pink peonies from the folks who lived here before us. The first year we had our new puppy, she ran through the yard snapping the heads off every one. Last year, she only ate about half the peonies. This year, I am hoping to be able to keep them all.
Wow, they are beautiful! After our conversation last year on twitter, I bought my first peony. It's up, but no buds yet.
Laura,
I hope your dog does let you enjoy your peonies this year. They're one of my favorite flowers and they have big, beautiful blooms.
Patti
Shawna,
Depending on the size of the peony and the type it is, you might not have any flowers this year. I planted some yellow ones, but to get a good price, I had to take a seedling. No flower buds last year or this year either. I'm guessing it will be another year or maybe two before I can enjoy those flowers.
Patti