Inspiration: Peonies

5-8-08 peonies.jpg Sometimes we're surprised at how much our mood can be affected by just a little change in scenery. Our living room is shades of light neutrals and some espresso, and yeah, it can feel kind of blah sometimes. These peonies have completely changed that, though.

Peonies generally require a cold winter frost to freeze the roots, which makes growing in San Francisco iffy, but some tree peonies (as opposed to the herbaceous variety) can do well here. We'd love to hear if anyone has any experience trying to grow peonies in the Bay area and any tips they might have, as we'd love to have these around more often. One last note - since this picture was taken, the flowers have changed from the fuchsia color shown to a soft blush. Lovely.

Comments (11)

Some of my favorite flowers...

posted by bepsf on May 8th 2008 at 2:44pm
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these are so beautiful!

posted by my little apartment on May 8th 2008 at 3:43pm
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I love these flowers. I didn't know they were called peonies. I can see why you say they lift your spirits... They can make everything be so alive!
Thanks for sharing this :)

posted by Alexxandra on May 8th 2008 at 3:58pm
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Beautiful!

posted by catmorgan94 on May 8th 2008 at 4:37pm
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wonderful flowers and an amazing photo! love it so much!

posted by jessica ford on May 8th 2008 at 5:36pm
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among my faves!

posted by k in ditmas on May 8th 2008 at 6:37pm
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This is soooo very funny.

I just bought a bunch of peonies for a photo shoot - and you're right, they totally liven up the space.

They are one of my favorite flowers. My Mom has buckets of them in her garden!

As a matter of fact, I think I'll submit one of the pictures I snapped for the Saturday Morning Flowers feature.

posted by thebitterfoodie on May 9th 2008 at 2:14am
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"We'd love to HERE..." ??? How about HEAR?

Sorry - big pet peeve.

posted by lilithslair on May 9th 2008 at 3:23am
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My favorite flower!! Now I'm going to have to buy some.

posted by jooly on May 9th 2008 at 5:44am
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I don't think my peonies have even budded yet - spring is very, very late here this year. I"m in Boise (Idaho) so they get their fair share of cold - I have no suggestions for you mild winter people. Mine are white that turn blush with time. I love, love, love them.

posted by GypsyTeri on May 9th 2008 at 6:16am
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I have some in my garden and I love them. Unfortunately so do the ants.

posted by hrhprincessfiona on May 9th 2008 at 6:53am
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