Peonies in the Jarvis Garden 2014

The end of May into June is the time of the year when Peonies bloom here on Long Island.  My mother always loved these plants and I have several from her garden to this day.    Peony roots can last for almost a hundred years.  I have seen people dig up Peony roots in abandoned lots, where a house has long ago been demolished.

The Peony bud sometimes is covered with small ants.  They seem only to be interested in the nectar, and do not damage the flowers.

 This white Peony with a touch of red at the center, came from my mother's garden.

She lived in her home for over fifty years and I transplanted some of the roots to my garden.  They have been here for forty years so far.  Peonies do not like to be disturbed and moved to another location, but if that is necessary, do it in the Fall, if you know where the plants are, or in the early Spring.   They may not bloom the first year after transplanting.  Plant the roots about two inches below the surface of the soil.   Broken pieces will  generate new growth, so divide these and plant them somewhere else in your garden. 

 This fuchsia bloom came from my friend Elizabeth.  The leaf sprouts in the spring are a deep red, not the common green as in other Peony types.

 Here I have used a single bloom stake with a curled top to hold up large blooms.

Although Peonies are lovely and long lasting, both the roots and the blooms, they are often too heavy for their stems and bend over.  The single bloom wire stakes can help.  But it always seems to rain really hard just after the blooms are in their glory.  Without the stakes whey will wind up on the ground.

 Somewhere in my travels, I picked up a very small bloom Peony.  These are lovely and do not bend over as much.

 This is the usual size of the pink Peonies.  The center is quite full.

These are the smaller pink Peonies, which look very nice over by the mailbox.  Some of the smaller blooms have a bit of pale yellow in their centers.

A boarder of Hostas around the Peony plants keep the stems and blooms from flopping over as much.   Believe it or not, mow or cut the stems and leaves down to the ground in the fall.  They will come back and the foliage by that time is not too attractive, so cut them back.