Peonies have never done it for me, but the more I see them around this spring, the more I watch them unfurl into mad pompons of to-die-for coral pink, the more I find myself coming around. Pretty, pretty...
I was strolling around a nursery with a friend when we passed the peony section. He said firmly, "I hate peonies. Aunts love them, though." I nodded sagely, thinking, "Oh, Aunts- the crazy things they like! Rod Stewart, cowgirl boots, hand-knitted scarves..." (Okay, it turns out my aunts and I have the same taste.) What he meant, of course, is that ants love peonies, and indeed I cannot picture the flower without imagining hundreds of ants living blissfully within each blossom. Not the sort of thing you want to get too close to, and forget about bringing one into your home. Ew.
But of course, there's a way around the ant situation. You can buy cut peonies, of course, ant-free and running between $4-$15/stem in San Francisco right now. Or you can follow the advice of Peony's Envy Nursery: "If you are worried about ants when bringing cut flowers into the house simply cut the flowers when the buds are still closed but soft. The buds start out as hard marble-like formations and as they begin to open they get soft like a marshmallow. Cut the flowers at this stage before the ants have found their way into the heart of the flower." Got that? After the marble stage, before the pompon stage.
Peonies are best grown in Hardiness Zones 3-8, but have any of you Bay Area Zone 9b gardeners had luck growing them? Those zone rules are sometimes made to be broken, but are sometimes hard & fast. Much of the West Coast and Pacific Northwest falls within zones 7 & 8 so there's hope for you all. Margaret Roach of A Way To Garden has an excellent peony health guide, poignantly titled "When The Normally Tough Peony Fails To Bloom". She'll get your peonies blooming like crazy in no time. Peony's Envy Nursery also has an amazingly thorough guide to peonies, including how to best care for cut flowers.
So what is it about peonies that's suddenly appealing to me? It's not their famous perfume because, I must confess, I don't like floral scents. I think it's the fact that peonies start out as hard and round and fresh-scrubbed as new potatoes, and over the course of a sensational few days, transform themselves into outlandish tutus that prima ballerinas would give their tiaras to wear. Peonies slowly, gracefully, confidently explode into something completely unexpected, and that is a true sight to behold.
Images: Delicate Peonies from A Way To Garden, Paris Flower Market by Jordan Ferney of Oh Happy Day! , Coral Hawaiian Peony from Moosey's Country Garden, Arrangement from Apartment Therapy
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how could you not like them?!
These are my favourite flowers! I love their puffiness, their softness and the colours. They often start out as solid balls - but once opened they show off their beautiful and (often) ombre centers.
Peonies are the flower that roses aspire to be. If they seem too frilly and girly for your tastes, get the deepest, richest garnet colored ones, and watch them bloom and bloom and bloom some more.
I finally have buds on plants I put in a few years ago! The plants were divided from my grandmother's grandmother & I can hardly wait to see them bloom. When I sell my house, those plants will move with me.
Every year I treat myself to a few bunches of purchased cut peonies. Fingers crossed, I can cut them from my own yard this year!
Starting to like? My favorite flower and do splurge when they are available.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/44713708@N00/5731295430/in/photostream
these were from Trader Joes inexpensive too but not the intense color of the other ones
http://www.flickr.com/photos/44713708@N00/5730744951/in/photostream
Are you insane? Peonies are my favorite: so wild and so graceful at the same time. I love their delicate scent as well. All the more for me, I guess.
There are maybe a handful of flowers allowed in my house because of scent-induced migraines. Peonies are on the top of that list! Beauty and gentle fragrance? Yes please!
Gorgeous flowers! I bought peonie bunches in two different colors and other flowers (ranunculoses and two-tone carnations), arranged them in clean and chic vases and gave them to my mom and mother-in-law for Mother's Day.
Peonies are my absolute favorite flower. They are so soft, delicate, and gorgeous.
I never thought much of peonies because in my mind, they were just a storybook flower from the Chinese operas my dad played (the Peony Pavilion) and I had only seen highly stylized ones from Chinese art. I saw real ones last year for the first time and I think they're gorgeous!
I used to not like them, because we had them in my backyard when I was young and they were fussy and the neighbor kid would mow them down when my parents let him mow. You could never bring the flowers inside because of the ants.
But then my aunt and uncle used them as their wedding bouquet, which I caught. And since then, I've been a fan of these fluffy blossoms.
Always loved Peonys - They're like Floribunda Roses, but without the aphids or thorns.
I've never cared much for them myself, but when someone left me some in an old olive jar, they started growing on me. They remind me of that movie stereotyped sexy librarian - they start out all buttoned up and prim looking, then after a while get all blowzy and sexy and tousled. An overdone trope, to be sure, but lovely in floral form!
Lovely flowers, but they are also very loved by ants.
my absolute fav as well :)
If you are that bothered by ants (and other natural denizens of a flower garden), then you will never enjoy truly enjoy flowers.
Seriously, buying "ant-free" cut flowers from a nursery, vs. just being able to cut some lovely flowers from your own garden? No contest.
The ants and I can deal with each other - I do my best to leave as many in the garden as possible, and a few get in the house. Not that big a deal.
My mom has a wonderful flower garden; roses are her first, best love, but she now has a long row of peonies as well, and truth be told, I like the peonies better.
Also, the peonies seem to grow better here in the Northwest than the roses do, and there aren't so many ants.
I fell in love with peonies when I saw them in old photos of my grandmother's wedding from the late 1920s. I copied her and used them as the main flower in my bouquet when I got married. I agree that they are what roses aspire to be (except roses smell better).
In the Northeast and Midwest peonies are definitely a June flower. I love how over-the-top they are and how they hit the ground when their branches can no longer support their weight. They are decadent and divine!
My mom had a yard FULL of them; all colors from pale white to crimson. Growing up, she used to joke around and call them pee-on-knees which all the proper neighbors hated. (I grew up in MN and my mom is from TX, so she has a TX accent. LoL)
I've always found interesting the symbiotic nature of ants and peonies...
I love peonies so much that my landscape plan revolves around two plants.
my favorite flower !
love peonies!
when i cut mine, i turn them upside down in a bucket of water to get rid of the ants before bringing them inside.
Love, love peonies. They come in so many fantastic colors, not just coral -- I think white has to be my favorite, unless it's blush-pink, unless it's deep fuchsia...
If you're cutting your own, you should note that cutting them at the closed stage isn't quite enough to prevent tiny ants in the house. There are still ants on the flower and stem; they just aren't in the heart of the flower yet. You'd still do well to shake the flowers, brush them, and examine them before they make it into your house.
Bodicegoddess, Minuet42 , & Matikin9- how fascinating that we all went through the same change-of-heart. I love the idea of peonies in an old olive jar, and I really, really love the sexy librarian image- totally!
Tallsarah- good luck!
Kmk355- thanks for the tip!
I love peonies! I have been searching all over this spring, though, to find a couple of plain peony cages (short, big diameter compared to tomato cages) to replace some that became mangled last winter. The only ones that I've seen are obnoxiously colored ones!
My favorite flower. The only thing I don't love about living in San Francisco is no peonies.
People tend to think they are old fashioned, something Grandma had in her garden... But what's old fashioned about a no to low maintanance perinial (here in the great white north), that comes in lots of beautiful shades, that make fantastic cut flowers, that make a handsome shrub when the blooms are done. If you have the right spots for them, you can't go wrong.
Peonies are my favorite flower (remove ants by soaking the buds underwater). They're lush, look wonderful in bunches or floating, and smell great.
However, I've not had much luck growing them in the bay area. i did have one plant that seemed like it might live (part shade and LOTS of water) to flower, but I moved before this happened. A new peony bush takes about two years to bloom after planting.)
I'm in Mich. now and can't wait to try again.
The ants help the tight bud open up ... once the peony begins to bloom you shouldn't have the ants anymore. I just cut them, give a shake, and bring them in ... I've never had an ant problem inside afterwards.
I adore these flowers and their glorious petals. I'm so sad they aren't able to grow in my area of the country and they're expensive to buy.