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Peony

Paeonia selections
Peony

Perhaps the best-loved perennials, herbaceous peonies belong in almost every garden. Their sumptuous flowers -- single, semidouble, anemone centered or Japanese, and fully double -- in glorious shades of pinks and reds as well as white and yellow announce that spring has truly arrived. The handsome fingered foliage is usually dark green and remains good-looking all season long. Provide deep rich soil with plenty of humus to avoid dryness, and don't plant the crowns more than 2 inches beneath the surface. But these are hardly fussy plants. Where well suited to the climate, they can thrive on zero care.

Light:
Sun,Part Sun
Zones:
3-8
Plant Type:
Perennial
Plant Height:
2 to 3-1/2 feet tall, depending on variety
Plant Width:
2 to 3-1/2 feet wide, depending on variety
Bloom Time:
Blooms mid- to late spring, depending on variety
Landscape Uses:
Containers,Beds & Borders
Special Features:
Flowers,Attractive Foliage,Fragrant,Cut Flowers,Deer Resistant,Easy to Grow
Top Varieties
Paeonia 'America' blooms early. It has single, deep red flowers with a central boss of yellow stamens. Foliage is midgreen. Zones 3-8
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Paeonia 'Blaze' offers single, 6-inch-wide scarlet-red blooms in early season. It grows 26 inches tall. It was released in 1973. Zones 3-8
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Paeonia 'Border Charm' is a cross between an herbaceous and tree peony. It offers yellow flowers on strong stems and grows only 22 inches tall. It was released in 1984. Zones 3-8
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Paeonia 'Bowl of Beauty' blooms in midseason. It has 10-inch-wide, anemone-flowered or Japanese form, deep sugar pink cupped flowers. The center is crowded with narrow creamy white petaloids. It was introduced in 1949. Zones 3-8
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Paeonia 'Charm' bears dusky dark red Japanese-style flowers with yellow-tipped centers. It was bred in 1931 and is still popular today. This selection is late-season bloomer and grows 3 feet tall. Zones 3-8
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Paeonia 'Coral Charm' blooms early with distinctly cupped semidouble coral pink flowers. The foliage is dark green. It was introduced in 1964. Zones 3-8
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Paeonia 'Festiva Maxima' is an heirloom from the 1850s that's still popular. It bears white flowers with tiny flecks of crimson and grows 3 feet tall. Zones 3-7
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Paeonia 'Gay Paree' is a distinct heirloom from 1933 that's still popular. Its raspberry-red flowers have a lush, ivory-white center. The plant grows 34 inches tall. Zones 3-7
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Paeonia 'Green Halo' offers twisted white petals flushed with green. It grows 30 inches tall and was released in 1999. Zones 3-7
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Paeonia 'Karl Rosenfield' is still one of the most popular red peonies today and was first introduced in 1908. It offers double red blooms on a 32-inch-tall plant. Zones 3-7
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Paeonia 'Krinkled White' is an early bloomer. Its large single flowers are pure white, ruffled along the edges, with a central boss of bright yellow stamens. This heirloom variety was released in 1928. Zones 4-8
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Paeonia tenuifolia has cupped rich red single 3-inch flowers in early to midspring. Its deep green foliage is fernlike, with many segments. Zones 3-8
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Paeonia 'Paula Fay' offers semidouble reddish-pink blooms on a plant that grows 35 inches tall. It was introduced in 1968. Zones 3-7
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Paeonia 'Pillow Talk' is a midseason variety introduced in 1973 with fully double, soft pink flowers. Foliage is dark green. Zones 3-8
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Paeonia 'Sarah Bernhardt' is an heirloom selection from 1906 with soft pink flowers and a lovely fragrance. It grows 3 feet tall. Zones 3-7
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Paeonia 'Sea Shell' bears single pink flowers on long stems. It grows 37 inches tall and was introduced in 1937. Zones 3-7
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Paeonia 'Sweet Marjorie' bears distinct blooms with twisted and curled pink blooms. It grows 32 inches tall and was introduced in 1999. Zones 3-7
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Paeonia 'Sword Dance' bears Japanese-type flowers with red petals and a large yellow center. It grows 3 feet tall and was introduced in 1933. Zones 3-7
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Paeonia 'Westerner' bears large pink flowers with yellow centers. It has strong stems and grows 34 inches tall. It was introduced in 1942. Zones 3-7
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Garden Plans
Fragrant Garden 2
Living Legacy Garden Plan
Really Red Garden Plan
Heirloom Garden Plan
Colorful Front Entry Garden Plan
Summer-Blooming Front Yard Cottage Garden Plan
Side-Yard Cottage Garden Plan
English-Style Front Yard Garden Plan
Fall Favorites Garden Plan
Raised Beds Garden Plan
Season-Long Garden Plan
Cool-Color Garden Plan
Deer-Resistant Garden Plan
Beautiful Sunny Summer Garden Plan
Plant It With
Baby's breath

The billowy mounds of white baby's breath bring airiness to a peony plant in sunny borders.

Shasta daisy

Blooming at the same time, the large pure white single or double flowers of Shasta daisy play off well against the cup or bowl shape of peony flowers in sun.

Flax

The silky, azure blue flowers of perennial flax bloom with peonies and they make fine partners in sunny flower gardens.

Propagation
Seed
Division

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