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Peonies bloom in a wide range of forms, from simple, elegant singles to massive doubles with more than 300 petals. In China, where the peony has been cultivated for over 2000 years, growers have developed a rather complex system for classifying tree and herbaceous peony blossom shapes. Peony culture has a much shorter history in Europe and the United States. The system used by American growers to classify peony flower shapes is less specific than that used in China. At Cricket Hill Garden, we try to use the Chinese system for classification of flower forms. We feel that it is a better tool for recording the nuances between different cultivars. While a shorthand of single, semi-double and double is perfectly adequate for understanding the basic difference in peony flower forms, the Chinese system is for connoisseur gardeners with a well developed appreciation for the subtleties of the nature of the flowers.

Its somewhat akin to drinking tea or wine; while a black Lipton’s teabag is fine, and Mondavi is drinkable, others find joy in the perfect blend of a select plantation tea or discovering a new 90 point expert’s vintage.

Historically in China the preference amongst gardeners seems to have been for extravagant double blossoms. We have had experience growing these over the past 25 years and some of them are very difficult to bloom in the true form. The soil and nutrients have to be in balance, a double form flower will not perform well in less than optimal soil.

Over the last several decades, Chinese peony breeders have made many newer introductions of flowers with lighter, more open forms.  The vast majority of Japanese peonies are single or semi-double. American growers have largely adopted the lighter form preference, dismissing large double blossoms as “ungainly.” As a result most hybrid tree peonies selected by America breeders for propagation are single or semi-double form.

American gardeners, however have a continued devotion to large flowered double herbaceous peonies. Despite their weak stems, the big ‘poufy’ peony is still a favorite. What we have tried to do in our trials is select the best growing habits of the hundreds of peonies we have tried. When we recommend a tree or herbaceous peony, it is because we know it performs well, blooms easily and will have more than adequate stem strength. That is why you see a very discriminating ‘edit’ of our peony offerings, we want the best performers as well as the most stunning forms and colors.

The flower forms on the chart and the examples that follow show some of the best cultivars in each category.

The classical Chinese system for identifying peony flower forms.

Note the definitions of the forms as well as examples of peonies which bloom in the given form.

Single: 1-3 layers of petals that are large, wide and flat. Stamens and   pistils are exposed. These flowers are normally fertile.

‘Cup of Shining Night‘ 夜光杯 Ye Guang Bei Chinese Rockii tree peony

‘Phoenix White‘ 风丹白 Feng Dan Bai Chinese tree peony

‘Pink Jade’ 粉玉 Fen Yu Chinese herbaceous peony

‘Empress Wu’s Yellow‘ Peony Heaven hybrid herbaceous peony

Lotus (semi-double): Large and close fitting petals in 4-5 slightly overlapping layers forming the shape of a lotus flower. Both stamens and pistils are exposed.

‘Yu Ban’s White‘ 玉班白 Yu Ban Bai Chinese tree peony

‘Muramatsu Cherry‘ 村松樱 Muramatsu Zakura Japanese tree peony

‘Big Deep Purple‘ 大棕紫 Da Zong Zi Chinese tree peony

‘High Noon‘ American Lutea hybrid tree peony

Chrysanthemum (semi-double): Counting 6 layers of petals which gradually decrease in size towards the center. Stamens can be normal, or somewhat petaloid (where the stamens become petals). Pistils are normal.

‘Minnie Shaylor‘ American herbaceous peony

‘Multi-Colored Butterfly‘ 花蝴蝶 Hua Hu Die Chinese tree peony

‘Garden Treasure‘ (Hollingsworth) Intersectional ‘itoh’ hybrid peony

Rose (semi-double): Counting 6 layers of petals, which are usually larger than the chrysanthemum form. Petals are larger on the outside than on the inside. Stamens and pistils are somewhat or mostly petaloid.

‘Bartzella‘ (Anderson, 1986) intersectional ‘itoh’ hybrid peony. This blossom measured over 9” in diameter!

‘Luoyang Red‘ 洛阳红 Luoyang Hong Chinese tree peony

‘Hibiscus with a Pink Complexion’ 肉芙蓉 Ru Fu Rong Chinese tree peony

‘Twin Beauty’ 二桥 Er Qiao Chinese tree peony

Anemone (double): 2-3 outer layers of wide and straight petals. Stamens are completely petaloid and have become small narrow petals. Pistils are either normal or reduced. Under the American system of classification, this form is known as “Japanese.”

‘Purple Phoenix Feather‘ Zi Feng Yu 紫鳳羽 Chinese herbaceous peony

‘Dragons Nest’ American herbaceous peony

‘Philomele‘ French herbaceous peony

Hundred Proliferate (double): Many- layered double, having the appearance of two merged and overlapping flowers. This is a common form, with many lactiflora type herbaceous peonies falling into this category.

‘Riches and Honor‘ 大富贵 Da Fu Gui Chinese herbaceous peony

‘Black Dragon Holds a Splendid Flower‘ 乌龙捧盛 Wu Long Peng Sheng Chinese tree peony

‘Flying Swallow in a Red Dress’ 飞燕红装 Fei Yan Hong Zhuang Chinese tree peony

‘Cinnabar Phoenix‘ 丹凤 Dan Feng Chinese herbaceous peony

Golden Circle (double): 2-3 outer layers of large petals. Most of the stamens are petaloid, but a ring of normal stamens remains and has the appearance of a golden circle between the narrow interior petals and the wide outer petals.

This is a rather uncommon form, though many of the more complex double flowers will bloom in this form when young or when not adequately fertilized.

Yellow with Big Leaves 大叶黄 Da Ye Huang Chinese tree peony

Thousand Petal Crown (double): Wide and expansive outer petals. Stamens are completely petaloid and usually have the appearance of becoming larger from the exterior to the interior of the flower. The center of the flower is raised.

Historically, this was by far the most popular flower form in China. Many, though not all, of the cultivars which bloom in this form have flowers which are so large and heavy that they are side-facing, or down-facing. This does not mean they are all hidden flowers, they bloom from the side view rather than on top of the plant.

‘Fragrant Jade’ 香玉 Xiang Yu Chinese tree peony

‘Color of Eternity‘ 万世生色 Wan Shi Sheng Se Chinese tree peony

‘Yao’s Yellow’ 姚黄 Yao Huang Chinese tree peony

‘Luster of Jade’ 景玉 Jing Yu Chinese tree peony

Hydrangea Globular (double): All stamens are completely petaloid with shapes and sizes similar to those of normal petals. Pistils are petaloid or reduced. These flowers are said to resemble hydrangea blossoms are well as xiuqiu, embroidered silk balls which are a traditional handicraft in parts of China.

This is a rarely encountered form. Cultivars which bloom in this shape require optimal growing conditions to do so because the flowers are so large.

‘Pure Red Gold‘ 大红赤金 Da Hong Chi Jin Chinese herbaceous peony

There are some peony shapes which do not fit neatly into the above categories. An example is the “lion’s mane” form of tree peony blossom which was very popular in Japan in the 19th century. These flowers are typically semi-double and ruffled. These shaggy flowers are not as popular today and rarely seen in commerce.

‘White Jade Lion’ 白玉獅子 Hakuojishi is a variety which is said to bloom in the ‘lion’s mane’ form.

‘Blue Jade in Three Colors‘ 蓝玉三彩 Lan Yu San Cai Chinese rockii tree peony blooming in both its mature and immature flower form.

Peonies which do not have access to adequate nutrition will not bloom up to their potential.  Flowers on poorly fertilized plants will be smaller and simpler than their true form.

Peonies show alternate shapes and will often not bloom in their mature form when young. This is especially true of the more complex forms of tree peonies. The mature age for a tree peony is usually considered to be about ten years old.

Many of the full flower forms we offer now will bloom well by 5-6 years of age. We have discarded hundreds of peonies as too slow to bloom or too difficult to grow over the past 25 years. What we offer in 2014 is a result of the many years of trial growing here in Connecticut.

Yao’s Yellow, blooming in an incomplete form with missing petals.

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As our herbaceous peonies enter their grand finale for 2013, we have already begun to plan our fall peony planting at Cricket Hill Garden.  Peonies are very long-lived and relatively carefree provided that they are given a good start.  Planting healthy stock is of course vital, but equally important is to amend the peony planting area so that the peony will thrive there.  Basically, this entails adjusting the soil’s pH to the proper level and adding adequate organic material to deficient soils so that the peony will be provided with long-term nourishment.  A little work now will pay you back with years of beautiful flowers.  See our youtube video on this preparing a new peony planting area.

If you are planting peonies in a new garden area, choose a location with 6 hours of sun (tree peonies will also grow well in dappled shade, but if you are planting herbaceous or intersectional ponies, select a full sun location.) The other basic requirement for peonies is a well drained site.

When planting garden bed, make sure that the soil is deep enough to accommodate a peony’s extensive root system. Don’t worry if the soil is rocky, just don’t plant  in an area with only a few inches of soil above a boulder or rocky ledge.

In New England, our soils tend to be sandy and rocky, as well as low in calcium and phosphorus. In our area the native soil’s pH is around 5.0 to 5.5, much too low for successful peony cultivation. Poor soils can be amended to improve fertility. Its always a good idea to have your soil tested so that you know your soil’s baseline mineral and fertility levels. The following list of amendments is suited for poor to average soils.

                     The following is a deluxe method for amending unimproved,  poor native soil

                      if you are creating a new planting area.

Add these natural soil amendments to your planting site

We add 2 lbs each of the following soil-building amendments to our planting site sized 3′ x3′:

• Azomite– (long term minerals and trace minerals)

• Hi-Cal (Calcitic) Lime- For calcium, this also raises the pH of the soil, 6.5-7.0 is ideal for peony growing.

• Colloidal Phosphate- For short-term calcium boost and slow-release phosphorus, very important for bloom production.

• Greensand- For improving soil texture and adding potassium.

We add 1 lb. each of the amendments listed below for building high levels of humus:

• Alfalfa meal

• Blood meal

• Bone char
• These amendments can be found through suppliers like Espoma and Dr. Earth which package for the home gardener, sold online or locally at well stocked garden centers.

Mix all of your amendments together and spread them over a 3′ x 3′ area.

Rather than rotor-till a new planting area, we like to smother the grass and unwanted plants. By not disturbing the soil, we leave the complex web of beneficial bacteria and fungi intact.

One large wheel barrow full of finished compost achieves two goals, it adds organic material to the planting area and will also smother the unwanted grass.

Top off the compost pile with a wheelbarrow load of mulch. We have lots of old wood chips around the garden, so we use these. You might also consider using grass clippings or leaves.

Allow the soil amendments, compost and mulch to sit over the next few months.  In the fall, when you are ready to plant, pull back the mulch and compost from the center of the pile and plant your peony there. All of the good compost and mulch will nourish the peony and get it off to a great start.

If your garden area has better soil and has been worked before, a  simpler method which will  yield good results  would be to add 1- 2 lbs Azomite and one wheelbarrow load of compost to the future planting area sized 3′ x 3′. If you know your soil is acidic, add 1-2 lbs. of ground limestone. Allow this to sit and ‘stew’ over the summer and in early fall your soil will be ready for planting.

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Spring has arrived in most of the continental United States and peonies throughout the land are starting to put out their new growth for the season. We are often asked how to distinguish between new tree peony shoots and advantageous herbaceous graft root suckers. We hope that the pictures below might help to elucidate the difference. A degree of horticultural eye is required, especially when growth is first emerging, so if you are unsure, wait until the new growth has progressed to a point where you can distinguished between the different leaf types of tree and herbaceous peonies before removing any growth.

At Cricket Hill Garden, about half of our tree peonies are propagated by root division while the other half are propagated by grafting onto herbaceous peony rootstock. Some grafted tree peonies, if not planted to a proper depth, are prone to have their herbaceous under-stock sprout, or in horticultural terms, sucker.

Herbaceous under-stock sprouting on a grafted tree peony. Note the distinctive ‘bullet’ shape of the new shoots. A new herbaceous peony shoot will always have fatter and fleshier bud than a new tree peony bud (shown in the next image). If you are unsure of what you are looking at, you can always email us a picture at crickethillgarden@gmail.com and we will do our best to help you ID the new shoots you are seeing around your tree peonies.

If the new growth around your tree peony looks like that in the above photo, you should remove it. See our past blog post, on how to do this. Before you chop out any new growth, be sure that what you are seeing is not just the tree peony sending up new stems from its own root system, as shown in the picture below.

Own-root tree peonies and grafted tree peonies which have been planted deeply enough will send up new tree peony growth from the root system as they mature. New tree peony growth can be distinguished from herbaceous root-stock suckering its narrower profile.

If you are unsure if the new shoots which you are seeing are tree or herbaceous peony shoots, its best to wait until the first leaves appear. Tree peony leaves will be dissected, while herbaceous peony leaves are more ovate.

Tree peony leaves are highly dissected and usually have three prongs.

Herbaceous peony leaves are ovate and are never dissected.

If you have any questions, about this or any other peony related topic, please email us at crickethillgarden@gmail.com.

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Early spring is the best time to prune a mature tree peony. The window to do this after the buds have begun to swell, and before new growth has commenced.

Prune tree peonies once the buds have begun to swell a bit. This way there is no question if a bud is alive or not.

Recommended tools are a pair of bypass pruners and a small pruning saw. Make sure they’re sharp!

Look at the plant as a whole and identify dead wood.

In other cases an entire side branch may die. Cut the entire dead side branch down to the main branch.

When pruning a branch which still has some viable buds, cut down to the nearest live bud. The cut should be positioned just above the first live bud and angled down, sloping away form the bud. This allows water to more easy drain off and results in better healing.

A good pruning cut. We do not coat the wood with any substance.

A poor pruning cut. The stub of dead wood above the bud is too long. This does not promote good healing.

After you have pruned up the upper branches, examine the base of the plant. Spindly interior growth often dies and this dead wood should be cut to the ground.

Saw large diameter stems or branches.

Finally, after all the dead wood is removed, examine the plant for small and spindly growth. If the plant is vigorous and growing well, remove these very small side branches. They are usually found in the interior of the plant. They will not flower and will only inhibit air circulation.

Lastly, remove all pruning from garden, they could potentially harbor fungal spores.

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