Evening star., 1954-09-05
For Decoration Day Bloom
For Decoration Day Bloom
Plant Peonies Now
sun-Lovers Demund Little in Way Of Gore;
New Hybrids creute Widespread interest
By w. H. Younemon
The ssor's cordsn Edlfer

Peonies have been the favorite
perennial garden flower for gen.
erations, In fact they have oc-
cupied q sort Of prominence since
biblical times. Few consider bor-
ders or paintings complete with
out one or more clumps of peon-
les. Perhaps this is because Of
childhood associations or be-
cause we associate them with
Decoration Day. Anyway. we all
love them. 3
Peonies are sun-lovers and will
thrive in almost any reasonably
good garden soil. They are un-
demanding. but Of course cannot
give quality bloom If in compe-
ton with weeds and grass. More
over, in this area we seldom have
trouble with insects or diseases.
EorIy Towering
Most gardeners are content to
grow the heavy-headed Chinese
double varieties. forms Of Pae-
onia albif1ora. However, two at
tractive species flower much
earlier-P. officinalis and p.
tenuifolia. Then too. the hy-
bridizers have produced a great
many very attractive new hy-
birds. creating a great deal of
interest. Besides these, the
gardener might also find the tree
peony. so distinctive that it
would be worth including in the
garden planting. Not the old
heavy-headed P. moutan, but
some of the new hybrids' that
hold their flowers up for all to
admire.
But even if the gardener is
not prepared to "go for" some
of the newer and striking de-
velopments, it would be well to
keep in mind that there are
SIX major types of garden
peonies. We have already men,
toned the Chinese double. which
is listed as a rose in the off,
cial classification.
Then there is the single, with
few petals and large number
of stamens.
The Japanese, which Is also a
single but with wider, more con-
spicuous stamens.
The semidouble has two or
more rows of petals and num-
ber of stamens which have de-
veloped into petal-like parts. The
crown has both stamens and
carpets with petal-like appear
ance.
The fifth type, rose. is a COM
pletely double flower, with both
the stamens and carpets de-
veloped into petals.
The sixth type, bomb, is more
of an anemone type of flower,
the petals form a collar for the
stamens, which have developed
into narrow petals, as distinct
from the rose where they closely
resemble the outer petals Of the
flower.
How Varieties Are Roted
It is almost impossible to pre-
pare a satisfactory list of peonies
for planting in this area because
only a few have been given
adequate testing here. Generally
we are more likely ID have pleas
ing results with the early and
midseason varieties than with
the late season. Also, all va
rieties are rated by the American
Peony Society to a scale of 10.
Any variety with rating below
rs should not be considered.
Personally, we should not be in
terested in one with less than
an 8.5 rating except for the few
types and colors lacking high
rated varieties.
Choosing a variety according
to rating is likely to be more
satisfactory than as to its price.
New varieties are likely to be
more costly, even though the
official rating as to bloom quail
ity is not as high. The variety,
Festiva Maxima. a 100-year old
variety, has one of the highest
ratings f9.3 and is very depend
able in this area. La Cygne, a
new one with a slightly higher
rating (94) has not always been
dependable in this area although
it too is an early variety. The
reds are mostly late season
bloomers, and we have been
satisfied for the most part with
mid-season varieties such as
Karl Rosenf1eld (8.8) and Phi
lippe Rivoire (9.2). Some of the
earlier blooming newcomers will
undoubtedly give US a wider
range in color tones and form.
Kansas. a new midseason va
riety, was the best red. double
in five out of the six major
shows this past spring.
Some of the New Hybrids
While it is hardly good judg-
ment to mention the newer hy-
brid peonies. because they are
still scarce and comparatively
high-priced. they are undoubt-
edly the most interesting and
different" flowers on the mar
ket. The hybrids include the
pale yellow single, Claire de
Lune, which was developed by
DR.. E. A. White, formerly Of
Kensington, Md, as well as the