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Jan 8, 2025 4:37 PM CST
Maryland (Zone 7a)
Bookworm Roses Region: Maryland Peonies Hibiscus Herbs
Dahlias Cut Flowers Cat Lover Region: Canadian Garden Photography Butterflies
I agree that Sunny Girl has the weekest strms in my garden. I cut them immediately and they are okay in a vase for a few days. They are very delicate and theslightest rain leaves them a sodden mess. I can't remember if the blooms were misshapen. They didn't bloom in the spring of 2024. I had a malicious squirrel that was snapping off all the yelow buds in my garden. Got Early dawn too!
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Jan 8, 2025 4:52 PM CST
Name: Anya
Fairbanks, AK (Zone 3a)
Cat Lover
I love Sunny Girl though have to support it. It is ok because I have to support almost all my peonies due to cool conditions.
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Jan 8, 2025 9:59 PM CST
Moderator
Name: Liz Best
Columbiana Alabama (Zone 8a)
Annuals Winter Sowing Plant and/or Seed Trader Peonies Lilies Irises
Hummingbirder Dragonflies Dog Lover Daylilies Bee Lover Birds
Sunny Girl never made it out of my CO garden, just never really grew well at all. Didn't replace it when we made the move to AL.
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Jan 9, 2025 8:24 PM CST
Name: Karen
Southeast PA (Zone 6b)
Celebrating Gardening: 2015
I don't have experience with Sunny Girl but it sounds like I don't think it will do well in my garden given the above comments. Maybe Seidl's Super Yellow is a good herbaceous yellow? But the price is a bit high at the moment. For now, I think Lemon Chiffon is a good enough yellow in my garden. I have 3 yellow itohs so the yellows are sufficiently represented in my garden. I used to have a High Noon TP but it died 2 years ago due to root rot. I may add a yellow tree peony in the near future.
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Jan 9, 2025 10:37 PM CST
Name: Anya
Fairbanks, AK (Zone 3a)
Cat Lover
Karen, you could try Vanilla Schnapps, it performs really good in my garden.
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Jan 10, 2025 7:44 AM CST
Moderator
Name: Liz Best
Columbiana Alabama (Zone 8a)
Annuals Winter Sowing Plant and/or Seed Trader Peonies Lilies Irises
Hummingbirder Dragonflies Dog Lover Daylilies Bee Lover Birds
Karen, Alice Harding to me is still the most gorgeous yellow peony I've ever seen. It's a woody peony but the plant is so small that it could easily fit almost anywhere, tops out just over 2'. The flowers are huge and the prettiest color of yellow. She blooms very late for a tree peony. Here in AL has been the flower to close with my peony season so far every year. A few years ago there were pics of being buds and then flowers posted on FB along side common balls to demonstrate the size of the bud/bloom. As a joke, I got a miniature sized basketball and posted a pic of it with Alice.
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Jan 10, 2025 2:23 PM CST
Name: Karen
Southeast PA (Zone 6b)
Celebrating Gardening: 2015
Liz, yes that is a great picture! I was fooled by it for sure! I forgot but I do have Alice Harding currently grown in a pot. I am thinking of adding a taller yellow like High Noon, but want to try something different than High Noon.
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Jan 10, 2025 2:24 PM CST
Name: Karen
Southeast PA (Zone 6b)
Celebrating Gardening: 2015
anyagoro said: Karen, you could try Vanilla Schnapps, it performs really good in my garden.


Anya, I do have Vanilla Schnapps but unfortunately it has not been doing well in my garden. It starts out great but the buds kept getting killed or damaged by late freezes. Too few buds made it to bloom.
Last edited by kousa Jan 10, 2025 2:26 PM Icon for preview
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Jan 10, 2025 8:26 PM CST
Name: oscar
beamsville Ontario canada (Zone 6a)
Bee Lover Region: Canadian Peonies Photo Contest Winner: 2017
Karen you should try Kinshi
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Jan 10, 2025 9:57 PM CST
Name: Karen
Southeast PA (Zone 6b)
Celebrating Gardening: 2015
ol434445 said: Karen you should try Kinshi
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That's gorgeous! I would love to grow this, but I don't think it's available in the US.
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Jan 11, 2025 8:50 AM CST
Moderator
Name: LG
Nashvillle (Zone 7b)
Butterflies Garden Photography Hostas Hummingbirder Peonies Region: Tennessee
Forum moderator
kousa said: Anya, I do have Vanilla Schnapps but unfortunately it has not been doing well in my garden. It starts out great but the buds kept getting killed or damaged by late freezes. Too few buds made it to bloom.



Karen, that is what happens with my Vanilla Schnapps too. But if there isn't a late cold snap, it is a beautiful bloom.


Oscar, your Kinshi is magnificent!
LG - My garden grows with love and a lot of hard work.
Last edited by Mieko2 Jan 11, 2025 8:51 AM Icon for preview
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Jan 11, 2025 10:45 AM CST
Name: Karen
Southeast PA (Zone 6b)
Celebrating Gardening: 2015
Mieko2 said: Karen, that is what happens with my Vanilla Schnapps too. But if there isn't a late cold snap, it is a beautiful bloom.


Oscar, your Kinshi is magnificent!


Yes, it really sucks! When the pips come out with big fat buds, they look so promising and exciting. I kid you not last year, I counted at least a dozen of stems with fat buds. I was so happy and couldn't wait to see the bush in bloom. By bloom time though, most of the buds were gone and I was left with 3 flowers - 1 good bloom and 2 misshapen ones.

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I tried to protect them whenever I could but still poor results.
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Jan 11, 2025 1:05 PM CST
Name: Valerie
Ontario, Canada (Zone 4b)
Region: Canadian Peonies Irises Daylilies Hybridizer Bulbs
Seller of Garden Stuff Plant and/or Seed Trader Bee Lover Birds Keeper of Koi
Just a note here Oscar (and Karen) - Kinshi is also registered/sold as Chromatella and can be very variable in colour (see APS website). Karen - you may find it for sale as Chromatella.
How strange that Vanilla Schnapps prefers colder zones - it's been a slow starter since 2021 but last year it did very well here Thumbs up

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Jan 11, 2025 2:30 PM CST
Moderator
Name: Liz Best
Columbiana Alabama (Zone 8a)
Annuals Winter Sowing Plant and/or Seed Trader Peonies Lilies Irises
Hummingbirder Dragonflies Dog Lover Daylilies Bee Lover Birds
Funny, for the longest time I thought Kinshi was the same as High Noon. I see that I was definitely wrong on that one. I bought it as Chromatella from Solaris several years ago but it didn't survive.

Have you seen Tria, Karen? I've seen several beautiful pics of it, don't think mine has bloomed while I was present yet. The pics I've seen fade from a pale apricot to pale yellow.
Avatar for littlebin
Jan 19, 2025 11:21 PM CST

This sounds a progress to discuss the shortcomings of some varieties.

I remembered a few years ago, when I said quite a few Itohs has distorted and shrinked flowers, some APS administrators felt so offended, they blocked me.

I still feel some Itohs had bad flowers form than these listed ten worst peonies.

Block me if you feel offended.
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Jan 20, 2025 1:12 AM CST
Name: Anya
Fairbanks, AK (Zone 3a)
Cat Lover
Nate says the same and I also agree. I have a few Itoh's and I can list the best that have stable flowers from year to year. I don't buy more Itoh's though cannot say anything about new generation Itoh's of Don Smith.
Avatar for Zellycat
Jan 23, 2025 9:36 PM CST
CT (Zone 6a)
Anya, which itohs do you like? I've been happy with Hillary, Smith family jewel and scrum but they're not very old. I've added a few others, including Gordon E. Simonson, but they're too young to know anything about them, yet. Hopefully I've picked good ones!
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Jan 24, 2025 5:47 AM CST
Moderator
Name: Liz Best
Columbiana Alabama (Zone 8a)
Annuals Winter Sowing Plant and/or Seed Trader Peonies Lilies Irises
Hummingbirder Dragonflies Dog Lover Daylilies Bee Lover Birds
Littlebin, where were you blocked? Was that on social media, here or elsewhere?
I've not encountered an Itoh that put out distorted flowers or threw really long and weird stems like I've seen in pics. I have had several that flat out refused to flower at all for more years than I'm happy with. Sonoma YeDo only bloomed once in the 5 years I had it in Colorado, only the first spring after it was planted. It's the only one I remember in specific but happened to several. Oh, definitely the same behavior with my first Bartzella, not sure if that plant ever flowered. Formed a nice, leafy shrub with not a single flower. So frustrating!
I end e up with several of Don Smith's new Itohs last fall, all very small plants so likely no blooms for a year or 2 minimum. Some of the pics show really pretty blooms so I'm hoping for the best.
Avatar for littlebin
Jan 24, 2025 8:55 AM CST

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LizinElizabeth said: Littlebin, where were you blocked? Was that on social media, here or elsewhere?
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Jan 24, 2025 6:31 PM CST
Moderator
Name: Liz Best
Columbiana Alabama (Zone 8a)
Annuals Winter Sowing Plant and/or Seed Trader Peonies Lilies Irises
Hummingbirder Dragonflies Dog Lover Daylilies Bee Lover Birds
That's not good. I'm one of the admins on the APS group, I'm sorry that happened to you. As long as the discussion was about a plant and its behavior and not a specific grower it shouldn't have been blocked.

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