No bloom thread yet?

Last Saturday, in North Carolina. Tree peony Murad of Hershey Bar from Solaris, second spring I've had it.

Gorgeous! Love the color and white stripes on the reverse of the petals.

Beautiful bloom Anna! That was bred by Gratwick. I'm sure we will see more of his peonies on the APS Convention Tour in NY this year.

Congratulations on starting this year's bloom thread.

Congrats! Lovely blooms

The 2023 fever has started Now we will all be a bit high till mid-June

Here is the bloom on my p. ostii that went through the extreme cold. I will be pinching it off.

Congratulations Anna! Great way to start the season!

LG, so sorry you had damage. Isn't that so frustrating? Having all of that beautiful growth and buds just to lose them to cold…I know it's just a few out of May but it's the first few and those are special!

Jasmin said: Congrats! Lovely blooms

The 2023 fever has started Now we will all be a bit high till mid-June

Spring fever is on!

Mieko2 said: Here is the bloom on my p. ostii that went through the extreme cold. I will be pinching it off.

The bud next to the bloom looks good. I hope that one is not damaged.

LG, it looks as if the bloom is functional; it has produced pollen. The plant has been trying... Please reconsider cutting it

The season begins! Thanks Anna!
LG that big fat neighbor bud on your ostii looks good. I agree with Karen. Good things are coming.

Here it is today, with the display pretty much done.



I'm guessing this is somewhat earlier than the usual bloom time! We went three weeks from late February into March without a freeze, which isn't normal for this climate.

Anna …soo pretty..

Thank you all! Hopefully more blooms to come.

Anna, your Murad is wonderful. Thanks for the entire plant photo.

Very nice peony, Anna! I love the rich color! LG, next flower will open soon, exciting!!!

Wow! I can't believe you have blooms already Anna and LG. I guess TPs have an earlier bloom time. You and I are even in the same zone LG!

That whole bush photo is stunning Anna. I love how the blooms are held up like water lilies.

I think it's going to be some time until I have more woody blooms. It's all part of nature.

I have buds on Kamata Fuji that look like they could burst. Lots of other buds but they just won't open.

Mary… Just curious do you want the blooms to open on the plants ? Or if you needs blooms for some reason you can cut them and put them in water with a touch of seven up or flower fresh in water to keep the water from spoiling. I like to force a few peony's to bloom ahead of the garden blooms.
To force the buds to open…Cut the flower stem first thing in the morning. Place them in water over nite in the garage to soak up water, bring them in the next morning add fresh cut then follow with the above directions for floral display. I usually can keep them in the fridge after blooming for a couple of weeks. Or keeping them in a cold room or window will also prolong the blooms.

bumplbea said: Mary… Just curious do you want the blooms to open on the plants ? Or if you needs blooms for some reason you can cut them and put them in water with a touch of seven up or flower fresh in water to keep the water from spoiling. I like to force a few peony's to bloom ahead of the garden blooms.
To force the buds to open…Cut the flower stem first thing in the morning. Place them in water over nite in the garage to soak up water, bring them in the next morning add fresh cut then follow with the above directions for floral display. I usually can keep them in the fridge after blooming for a couple of weeks. Or keeping them in a cold room or window will also prolong the blooms.

Thanks Bea for very good tips. How do you force a tree peony to bloom ahead of time in the house? I mean at what point/stage can I cut the tree peony blooms so that they will open?

Here's a great link for all the info for cutting peony blooms .