“Peonies are my absolute favorite flower!”

I hear this ALL the time, and I couldn’t agree more! Peonies are one of my absolute favorites too!

Few flowers can compare to the ruffly, ultra romantic beauty of peonies in full bloom. It’s no wonder they’re our most requested flower for weddings and special events, and one of my favorite flowers to grow.

We are gradually adding more and more peony plants to our farm and plan to eventually have a full peony field. At the time of this writing, we have approximately 500 peony plants, some of them fully mature, and some are still maturing.

It can take seven years for a peony plant to fully mature! Growing peonies is an act of patience and an investment of time and resources. But the end results are well worth the efforts.

Once peony plants are established, they can last for a lifetime. They are resistant to deer and rabbits and are virtually pest free; but they attract butterflies.

The best time to plant peony roots is in the fall. They like an establishment period through the fall and winter before beginning their growth in the spring.

Peonies are easy to grow as long as you understand some basics for growing them well.

They need good drainage. Their feet don’t like to stay wet. So if you have heavy clay soil like we do, you’ll need to amend the soil before planting. At this time, most of our peonies are grown in raised beds to allow for proper drainage. We have been working on a field area for several years to start growing peonies in raised rows to allow for proper drainage.
They need to be planted shallowly. Peonies won’t bloom if they’re planted too deep. The eyes need to be no deeper than 2” below the surface of the soil, including any mulch or ground cover. We plant ours with the eyes 1” - 2” below the surface of the soil.
They need full sun. Peonies won’t bloom if they don’t get enough sun. They need full sun. It is acceptable, for peonies to receive afternoon shade, especially in our climate, but they must have at least 6 hours of direct sun to bloom well.

If grown for landscape use, peonies may require support because their large blooms weigh down the stems. Our peonies are cut before they are allowed to bloom out, so we don’t use supports for our plants.

For best vase life, we cut our peonies while they are still in the bud stage before they bloom. This allows us to store the peonies in the cooler for a few weeks and also allows the bloom to last as long as possible in a vase.

Before I started growing peonies, I did some research on the best varieties for growing in the south. What I found was that the earlier blooming varieties do better in our climate. The earlier blooming peonies have a chance to bloom before we get into the hot, hot part of the season.

I chose varieties based on this information and they have done very well for me.

‘Charlie’s White’ Peony

Bouquet with ‘Charlie’s White’ peonies, roses, dusty miller, nigella, laceflower

‘Charlie’s White’ peony was one of the first peony varieties that I started growing and has proven to be a wonderful producer in my climate. It is an early blooming variety that produces a lot of lightly scented blooms. The large outer petals surround a center bomb.

‘Charlie’s White’ is known as one of the best varieties of peonies for cut flowers; for it’s productivity, strength of stems, and it’s beautiful shape.

In my zone 7b climate, it blooms early - mid April, and makes a wonderful addition to bridal bouquets.

‘Monsieur Jules Elie’ Peony

‘Monsieur Jules Elie’ peony is beautiful shade of lavender-pink, that blends well with so many colors. It’s excellent for cut flower use and produces huge blooms that have a musky rose scent.

‘Monsieur Jules Elie’ was introduced in 1888 and is still incredibly popular as a cut flower and for landscape use.

Monsieur Jules Elie’ is an early - mid season bloomer, blooming in my garden from mid to late April. We love to use these beautiful peonies in our annual Mother’s Day deliveries.

‘Pink Hawaiian Coral’ Peony

‘Pink Hawaiian Coral’ Peony is one of our earliest blooming varieties, sometimes blooming as early as late March.

‘Pink Hawaiian Coral’ is exceptionally beautiful with semi double, coral- pink blossoms that seem to glow. They gradually open to reveal their yellow stamens and then fade to soft apricot-pink as they mature.

The blooms are fragrant and grow on strong, sturdy stems, making them an excellent cut flower, as well as a standout garden specimen.

‘Duchess de Nemours’ Peony

‘Duchess de Nemours’ peony produces gorgeous large, double, crown shaped blossoms with rich, creamy white petals.

Large and rounded outer petals surround a circle of smaller petals topped by a bursting crown of large, white slightly in curved petals. The blooms smell delicious and seem to float on top of their sturdy stems.

‘Duchess de Nemours’ is an early blooming variety that has been hugely popular for well over 150 years. This is one of my favorite peony varieties for bridal bouquets.

‘Sarah Bernhardt’ Peony

When people think of peonies, ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ is the one that comes to mind first. This classic beauty is an all time favorite. This very large, fragrant, rose-pink bloomer, takes my breath away every spring.

‘Sarah Bernhardt’ is one of our later bloomers, but does perform very well in our climate. The plants are vigorous and produce loads of blooms that we love using in our annual Mother’s Day deliveries and beyond.

These Peonies Will Blow You Away With Their Beauty