Peonies – part i

- By Patricia Hanbidge

June 19, 2025

key points from this story:

• Herbaceous peonies are long-lived perennials.
• Peonies bloom from late spring to summer.
• Varieties include single, Japanese, semi-double types.
• Bomb peonies have dramatic, full blooms.
• Double peonies create lush, heavy flowers.
• Modern breeding expands peony color choices.

I have fallen in love this year – with peonies – all over again! It is rather amazing that each year, I seem to have a new love in the garden. Sometimes it is an old love that again rises to the top and sometimes it is a completely new love! I have for some time been buying peonies from my favourite florist and have been enjoying them in vases in my house as well as gifting them to some of my favourite people for their homes. There is nothing quite like a peony in full bloom as their big fluffy flowers and heavenly scent are truly floral royalty.

There are a few different types of peonies, but this column will focus on the herbaceous peonies as those are the ones that have stolen my heart once again. Peonies are a gardener's dream that lives longer than most humans! Over the years I have seen them happily growing in farmsteads that have not housed humans for many years. They are a perennial that lives for a long time, but does not like being moved.

Herbaceous peonies die back to the ground in winter and in the spring regrow once again. Their season of bloom is from late spring to early summer – depending on your location and what type of peony you are growing. If you really like peonies and have the space there are early, midseason and late-blooming kinds of peonies that traditionally were white, blush, pink and red. Modern breeding has expanded our choices to include creamy white, coral, purple/lavender and even some variegated, multi-coloured types.

Single bloom types have a single row of broad petals surrounding a cluster of stamens and seed-bearing carpels. The quite striking and elegant. ‘Athena’ has single creamy-white cup-shaped petals with a delicate raspberry flare at the base of each petal. ‘Krinkled White’ has large crinkled or wavy petals surrounding the golden yellow heart of stamens.

Japanese peony types are similar to the signal bloom types of peonies but have a prominent centre of modified stamens (staminodes) that have become thickened and don’t produce viable pollen. They have either a single or double row of large, flat outer petals. A couple of stunning cultivars are ‘Sword Dance’ with rose-red petals with a centre of same coloured rippled staminodes etched in gold. ‘Nippon Beauty’ has deep red petals with bright red staminodes edged with gold.

Semi-double peonies have several rows of petals with visible pollen-bearing stamens. Their stems are generally more sturdy so do not require staking which is a big bonus! Some of my favourites include: ‘Coral Charm’ with an unique coral colour; ‘Buckeye Belle’ with striking deep red blooms with golden stamens; or ‘Garden Treasure’ with large golden yellow petals flushed with scarlet at their heart.

Bomb peonies have a single row of broad outer petals that form a skirt around the centre petals. The narrow inner petals that are surrounded by the broad outer petals are actually modified stamens and carpels, forming full, luxurious and impactful blooms. Some cultivars to try include: ‘Red Charm’ with true red petals; ‘Raspberry Sundae’ with elegant ivory coloured ruffles blushed with a delicious raspberry-pink shade and ‘Fire Bomb’ which is fire-engine red.

Double peonies have all stamens and carpels transformed into petals creating lush. fully rounded blooms. These flowers are heavy and large and often can be seen swooping down to the ground when they open. ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ is a famous later blooming fully double soft pink peony with later season bloom. ‘Kansas’ is another popular choice with large, fuchsia-red double blooms that is lovely as a cut flower.

Watch next week for more on peonies.