Gorgeous and gigantic, peonies are coming into their own right now. We love their big billowy blossoms and soft fragrance. What better way to enjoy them than to bring a few into your home?
These peonies in a window are perfect: the sunlight accentuates their delicate translucent petals. Their soft pink color is gorgeous with their dark green stems and leaves. And the window's slightly rustic, imperfect paint and screen is a neat contrast to the prettiness of the flowers.
Have you brought peonies into your home this season? We have a giant white one in a vase on the dining room table right now. Tell us about yours!
Images: Flickr user Muffet, licensed for use under Creative Commons
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Shake out the ants before bringing it into the house.
Williams Sonoma has some nice peonies lunch plates. Would love to hear what other decorating items people have found.
I was delighted to find herbaceous peonies coming up in my yard this spring (just bought the house last fall). Had I realized earlier though, I would have staked them...
I have a couple in a vase in my kitchen window now. I read somewhere online to cut them at the "puffy marshmallow" stage and then bring them in and let them open inside to avoid ants in the blossoms. That's worked for me.
I love peonies and had a couple in my last garden but they always broke my heart. One good rain and they'd crumple.
Peonies are traditional feng shui symbols of good luck in love. Place the real deal or artwork depicting peonies in your Love & Relationship area and see what happens!
our peonies are just starting to rise above the soil and the buds are tiny - I can't wait - maybe this year I will remember to put up the supports for them!
I love my peonies, and I don't have a problem with the ants - I just fill an open-top watering can with water before I cut them, and dunk the flowers before putting them right-side up in the water. My problem is teeny, tiny, little orange spiders. They seem immune to the dunking, and they freak me out too much to bring them in the house. Which makes me sad because I love the giant blooms of my peonies! Does anyone else have this problem? Anyone solved it or have an idea?
Ah, peonies are my favourite! Can't wait to have them in my kitchen.
FYI to anyone who is interested, Van Wert, OH used to have big peony farms, and has for over 100 years been celebrating what is now known as the Peony Festival! (that's right, including the parade with big floats, bands, and a Peony Queen)
For more info visit:
http://vanwert.com/peony/about.asp
I tie my peonies up with pantyhose right before they bloom instead of putting cages around them when they are small. The pantyhose are gentle enough that they don't hurt the plant. just give them a tie under the where the leaves start, and you can't even see them when they start blooming.