Paeonia 2008

[Hans J]

I'll have to check out all these photos later but I have a question about small Paeonies

Which are suitable to pot culture like P. cambessedesii?

My cambessedesii has only ever had one flower. This is it's third year flowering. The other two stems never produce a flower. I bought it the size it is now. What is the best mix it should be in?

Mark :

I would you not suggest any peonies for pot culture -I have written it earlier : they grows not well in pots !!!
the reason is her rootsystem ( they have big roots ) -some species have roots like potatoes ,some like Dahlias .....they must store in this roots the water to survive the hot summer temperatures .
I must grow some peonies in pots ( P. rhodia ,P. brownii + P. californica ) but this plants are not happy !

To the mix : I have good results with a mix suggestion from Ian Young :
2 parts gardensoil
1 part leavemould
2 parts gritt

Be shure that you have a excellent drainage !

My suggestion for you is : plant out your P. cambessendesii in fall - maybe in a part of your rockgarden -protectet for to many rain and no sun in the morning !

[ian mcenery]

Hans what a show - love the Ostis   

Well love em all really

[Paul T]

Hans,

Stunning pictures.  What a wonderful collection.

Can I ask a question about a specific cultivar please....... how big does 'Lavender' grow?  Is the foliage decidedly blue-ish in appearance?  It is a herbaceous variety isn't it?  I think those two species you mention as the cross are both herbaceous types.  I have seen one under that name here in Australia in a friends collection and hers was a very small grower with a good blue tinge to the foliage and flowers similar in colour to your pictures.  It could of course be dwarfed somewhat by our conditions here, but I am wondering whether it is naturally a smaller variety? 

Looking forward to more pics of your collection.

[Roberto Gamoletti]

Hi all
Very nice peony pictures. I would like to add a few pictures from my garden. Here in Italy species peonies flowered about three weeks ago but I did not think that peonies are a subject in the SRGC forum. Now I have in flower some herbaceous hybrid and the Itoh's. Lactifloras are starting in flower. This year for the first time I made controlled self pollination of species peonies to get true seeds.

[Hans J]

Hi Paul ,

To your question about 'Lavender' :
My plant is 60 cm high , yes the foliage is blue -ish ( from P. coriacea )
Yes it is a herbaceus varity .

But - I think this plant are really rare - it was not possibly for me to get it here in Europe - only with the help of a nice american friend  ( from PBS ) was made it possibly.
This cultivar is easy to know : the carpels are naked ( this is rare ) and this comes also from P.coriacea .

Before some years I made a similar cross : P. coriacea X P. lactiflora 'White Wings'
I'm sorry but in this year has my P. coriacea no buds - but here are some older pics :
P. coriacea flower
P. coriacea fruits

[Hans J]

Hi all
Very nice peony pictures. I would like to add a few pictures from my garden. Here in Italy species peonies flowered about three weeks ago but I did not think that peonies are a subject in the SRGC forum. Now I have in flower some herbaceous hybrid and the Itoh's. Lactifloras are starting in flower. This year for the first time I made controlled self pollination of species peonies to get true seeds.

Ciao Roberto ,

Nice to meet a other collector of species peonies !
Please send more pics from your collection .

Good luck with pollination
Hans

[Hans J]

Now today has opened the biggest peony of all her flowers :

P. ludlowii ( it's can reach 2,5 m ) - I have sowing this plant before 10 years and in last year I had the first flowers

P. suffruticosa 'Mde. Andre Devillers' ( a french breeding )

[Hans J]

  some ( perennial ) more from today :

P. officinalis "Alba Plena"
P. beresowskii
P. peregrina Calabria

[Hans J]

and now some ( tree) more :

P.potanini f. alba
P.lutea Sopron
P.delavayii ( my darkest clone )

[Maggi Young]

Here our paeonies are behind yours, Hans... here is our Paeonia ludlowii.... buds are tiny still but the plant is big enough, over six foot high, about 2m.



Paeonia delavayi flowers will come quite  soon!

[Hans J]

Here our paeonies are behind yours, Hans... here is our Paeonia ludlowii.... buds are tiny still but the plant is big enough, over six foot high, about 2m.

Maggi :

I'm really surprised for your P. ludlowii - I did not know that it's possibly to growing in your climate !
How old is your plant ?

[Maggi Young]

I'm really surprised for your P. ludlowii - I did not know that it's possibly to growing in your climate !
How old is your plant ?

Hans, can't remember exactly, but it must  be 12 to 15 years old.

[Paul T]

Hans,

Thanks for the info re 'Lavender'..... it should be correct, given where it came from, but I'll check.

I adore the officionalis 'Alba Plena' .... officionalis 'Rubra Plena' is probably my favourite herbaceous Paeonia both from appearance and growing up with it in my mother's garden.  I'd never seen the white one before, so very impressed by it.  That white potanini is impressive to.  I don't have P. potanini although I want to get it at some point.  I love those little bronzy flowers on it.  The white looks even better by the look of it.  Great pics!! 

[Hans J]

Hans,
I adore the officionalis 'Alba Plena' .... officionalis 'Rubra Plena' is probably my favourite herbaceous Paeonia both from appearance and growing up with it in my mother's garden.  I'd never seen the white one before, so very impressed by it.  That white potanini is impressive to.  I don't have P. potanini although I want to get it at some point.  I love those little bronzy flowers on it.  The white looks even better by the look of it.  Great pics!! 

Paul :

I'm sorry but I know nothing about this breeding P. off. 'Alba Plena' - the correct name is : officinalis !
To P. off. 'Rubra Plena' : this is here the most common of all peonies  -you see it in near every garden,
In Germany is called this plant : Bauern -Pfingstrose -this means : Farmer - Whitsun- Peony ( Pfingsten was the last weekend )
P. off. 'Rubra Plena' is a wrong name -because this is a cross : maybe with peregrina - I suppose it was made from monks
I grow also P. off. 'Rosea Plena' .......
The P. potanini f. alba is also a real rare plant ....I have sown before some years seed of it ( but I dont know from which other peony are the pollen ) ....now I wait for the first flowers .
The P. lutea 'Sopron' came orginal from the botanical garden of Sopron in Hungary .

[Susan Band]

Hans, Peonia ludlowii is a very popular plant in Scotland. It was brought back from Tibet by Scotsman George Sherriff when he was collecting with Frank Ludlow. Occasionally the buds get caught by a late frost but apart from that it loves growing here.
Susan