Hello, I live in Boulder City Nevada, about 21/22 miles from Las Vegas, (zone 9). I recently discovered Peonies and I really love them. They seem to do well in zones 8 and below. Has anyone ever tried to plant seeds or roots in this desert environment?

I would love to have a few Peony trees or shrubs along the side of my house. Any advice or tips are welcomed. TIA

There were peony forum members on GardenWeb in prior years that grew them in zone 9 and 10. There's also an article by Don Hollingsworth about growing peonies in warmer climates, don't have it bookmarked anymore but you can google it, basically says to cut them back in late summer to force dormancy. I think tree peonies and maybe Itohs would be your best bet to start with. Hopefully there will be someone here who can speak from actual experience in warmer zones...

Welcome to the peony forum!

https://crickethillgarden.word...

http://hollingsworthpeonies.co...

Any articles or threads talk about when a herb peony or tree peony breaks dormancy and starts to grow? Is there any estimated combination of temperature and daylight hours? Maybe some people claimed that even if the temperature is high enough, but if the daylight is too short, the plant will still not start growing?

Chicago today is 60 F during the day but it does not last. I was wondering if the temperature should stay in the 50~60 range for a week or longer, will a peony start to grow considering the daylight is relatively short right now?

I think it'd have to be a longer period than a week or so. We have that same kind of weather routinely during the fall and winter but the only time I've seen them break dormancy here after such a short period is when they're first planted.

There is a lot of information in Peony's Envy web pages . you will truly enjoy going through their site.

Thank you all!

Hello, neighbor in Boulder City. I live in Henderson. I've been growing peonies here for the last 6 years and loving them. I was worried I wouldn't be able to get them to bloom and planned to try the old bag of ice trick to try to get enough "cold" on them, but then was lazy and didn't do anything. Guess what! They came up anyway. Now the first two years each plant only on put on 1-3 blooms each, but now I have 5-8 at least for each one. Do make sure to choose early season plants so that they bloom before the heat gets them. I tried 4 different nurseries before I found Hollingsworth Peonies. Their peonies are far superior. (Sure wish I had known about Dave's Garden "garden watchdog" before I had wasted my money with those other companies.)

Thanks for the info Staci!
We have one member @lizbest ,that is moving to zone 8a and I'm sure she will be pleased to hear about your success!

I sure am! Congratulations on growing peonies successfully in zone 9! I have several that have been in zone 8a for 2 full seasons now with only occasional visits for weeding, no additional water at all and they're doing pretty well. We put in a huge bed last year and transplanted several hundred roots and plan to start retaining walls to plant woody peonies and Itohs this spring.
Hope you stick with us and share pics of your blooms this spring, Staci!

Hi ! I'm living in Henderson , i love peonies. Im looking for peonies bush anyone know where sell it . Thanks

Hello !
Im living in Henderson too . I love peonies
Im looking peonies bush to grow
In my garden.
Can you share me your experience about grow peonies
Im looking to order too but not yet bcz i dont inow where is good shop to buy
Thanks

Hello HaNguyenBurke! There is thread where you can find this information. Good luck!

Hello !
Im living in Henderson too . I love peonies
Im looking peonies bush to grow
In my garden.
Can you share me your experience about grow peonies
Im looking to order too but not yet bcz i dont inow where is good shop to buy
Thanks

[quote="HaNguyenBurke"]Hello !
Im living in Henderson too . I love peonies
Hello, neighbor!
Happy to see someone else not afraid to try to grow something other than cactus and rocks here. As far as buying peonies, you won't find them locally (and Star Nursery's plants leave something to be desired anyway.). You'll have to go on-line. I've bought from several companies, and the quality varied a lot. Most offer plants with 3-5 eyes but are from 2 or 3 year-old plants. Hollingsworth peonies also have 3-5 eyes, however they are from 4 year old plants and it makes a BIG difference. If you go onto the Davesgarden website and look under garden watchdog, you can see the ratings for different companies and also read reviews. It'll save you a lot of money in the long run.
Now, as far as growing peonies here, I was told to only order early season peonies because anything later wouldn't be successful because of how early it gets hot here. So I purchased six or so of those, and yes they bloom anywhere from 4-10 blooms a Bush now they've been in the ground 3-5 years. But they didn't have the heavenly fragrance that I missed from growing up in Kansas. So I took a chance and bought some mid-season peonies.
Guess what, they all grew and bloomed, some more than others.

"HaNguyenBurke"]Hello You'll want to order your peonies as soon as possible because the favorites always sell out. They won't send them until September, which is the best time to plant them here in Henderson. In most zones, you'll plant them 2 inches deep, but in our zone 9 I followed the advice of a friend growing them in Southern California to plant only an inch deep and found that successful. Also, in September you should cut the foliage down to the base to force the plant into dormancy. If the stems and leaves die earlier because of the hot weather, cut them back then. But don't be fooled by dead leaves or stems into thinking the plant is dead. Peonies are tough! Mark where the plant is with a stake so you don't accidentally dig it up or plant over it.
You'll be happily surprised in late spring when the peony pokes through the earth for a new start.