It is a Peony. My favorite ever. And they smell fantastic!

You are so close to having the name that you'll laugh when you see it. It is "Peony". \

Lisah has lots of peonies, and when she sees this thread, maybe she'll tell you about hers and post photos. She makes the most beautiful bouquets from her flower beds every year and often they feature her peonies.

Dawn

Here is a link that might be useful: How To Grow Peonies

Oh my gosh ...thank you all sooo much! Yes it is beautiful and ohhh the fragrance is to die for. Thank you also for the link on how to grow Peonies...I will for sure use it! Thanks a bunch!

It is a peony!!! It might be Sarah Bernhardt.

I love, love, love peonies. They are so easy to grow and they make lovely bouquets.

G H Wild has a great deal they run every year for 3 peonies for 12.00. It is not currently on their website, because their spring shipment of peonies is over, but it should show up in not too long.

I've added a lot of peonies to my yard with that 3/12 deal.

Lisa

Here is a link that might be useful: G H Wild

I see Dawn beat me to the posting! I actually have a huge bouquet of peonies on my desk right now. I wish I had my camera on me, I'd take a pic for you. But, I can put a pic in from a few years ago.

(Interesting how each year is different I don't have any larkspur ready to cut (and what I have is pitiful), neither is my baptisia anywhere near to sending up flower stocks. I've had to content myself this year with just peony/iris combos.

{{gwi:228476}}

{{gwi:228477}}

Yes that is a peony. They are so cool. In Japan I think they have these beautiful bushes that are 700+ years old. You can literally have them in your family for generations.
When my DH grandpa died 2 years ago I asked his grandma if I could divide her bush before she went to the home.
I got 3 little ones. I got my first true flower off the biggest bush this spring. I read something about them and they can take years to get established from divisons.
tree

I have my 2 bushes from divisions. The originally were my husbands grandmothers. I got my starts from his mother. I had big blooms on year 2 after planting. I think the key is lots of sun and most importantly when you plant them in the fall (best time to divide, if I remember correctly) is to make sure you don't bury them too deep. When I moved to my current house I brought my bush with me and divided it and had blooms the first year. The bush on the west side of my house gets full sun and is much bigger than the one on the east end.

I wish my allergies weren't so bad I would make a bouquet and bring inside they are so beautiful!

E

Peonies rock! I carried them in my bridal bouquet 10 years ago tomorrow. Or maybe it was 30.....

Lisa, Do you have your peony in full sun. I planted one when I first moved here and it bloomed for several years. A few years ago we built a new bathroom which reduces the sunlight to the plant and it didn't bloom at all last year and the year befoe it bloomed on such weak stems that they all fell over even though they were caged.

In front of the seed building at Baker Creek Seeds they have small trees then have peony planted at the base of them. The buds were just open enough today that I could see the dark red color, but the vines looked so much stronger than mine ever do. I think I have Sarah Burnhart.

I have read that they don't like to be moved, but obviously mine doesn't like where it is. What should I do? It has always had weak stems, but at least it did bloom.

And what do you do for bud blight? I have a couple pink peonies that don't bloom well, but but the buds shrivel and dry while still small. I need an organic solution.

Mulberryknob,
are you sure you have bud blight? Peonies, iike Roses, can get thrips, in which case a good systemic for thrips, etc., sprinkled around the base of the plant and worked into the soil will kill the bugs and give the buds a chance to open to full bloom.

Jeanie

Mulberryknob,
I checked to see what I have been using on my Peonies and Roses. It is Bayer's Advanced Rose and Flower Care. It kills the bugs and feeds the plant at the same time.
My Peonies are beautiful. Good Luck!

Jeanie

Carol, I have most of mine in partial sun. How much sun is yours getting? It does sounds like it might not be getting enough sun though.

Your husband doesn't mow down the foliage does he? I have a neighbor who used to mow hers down after the peony quit blooming. It eventually died. I think a lot of people forget the foliage feeds the plant for the next year.

Peonies can be moved. Just take a lot of the dirt/roots around it so it will settle in quicker. It may take a year or two to bloom, but it shouldn't kill it.

Also, how deep is your peony planted? They need to be up close to the surface.

Lisa

Lisa, I think it is a sun issue but wanted to hear that from someone else, I guess. When we were working on the bunkhouse, we took out the bathroom and built another one on the opposite end and of course creates dense shade. Since I have so many trees, it only got sunshine for part of the morning before and now gets even less.

I think that I will try moving it but today I am planting peppers. Thanks. Carol

Hi Lisa,

I may be wrong, but I think its better to move it in the fall. After the foliage has started dying back. They can be divided at this time as well. I literally took a hack saw and split mine down the middle. Then, when planting, make sure you leave what look like long "eyes", a sort of reddish color sticking out of the ground. Don't bury those.

My bush in full sun is a lot bigger than the one that gets part sun. And they don't seem to be fussy about water either.

Good luck and I hope that is of some help and please, if I've given any wrong info, let me know. I'm just sharing what is/has worked well for me.

E

It is better to move them then, but if it is not getting enough sun and slowly dying, I'd move it....but dig very widely around it to get as much of the roots as possible. It would be good to have the new hole dug first to make the transfer as quick as possible.

Thanks, Jeanie, I always have a few blooms and this year is no exception, but next year, I want a showing like the photo above.