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Post by nana on May 26, 2018 19:10:13 GMT -5
Give them love and time, Chuckie, and they will! Mine were coming from a position of strength. Your's have further to go, but they'll get there! Do you know what color they are?
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Post by karitx on May 27, 2018 17:20:47 GMT -5
I've never actually seen a peony in real life. You guys will have to share photos so I can be jealous!
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Post by nana on May 27, 2018 20:17:11 GMT -5
Oh my! We absolutely have to remedy that situation! Give me about two weeks or so!
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Post by chipperhiker on May 28, 2018 20:23:14 GMT -5
Oh, I love peonies. I have two single-flowering varieties that soldier on through serious weed pressure in a garden I used to care for. I miss them and will eventually move them to my farm.
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Post by nana on May 30, 2018 5:00:29 GMT -5
The single flower ones hold up better to thunderstorms, don't they? We always get a storm right when mine are in full bloom, so I have to run out and cut masses of them otherwise they'll all be flopped. Not that it's a hardship to have masses of peonies around, I love the way they smell. To me it's like lemon and roses combined.
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Post by chipperhiker on May 30, 2018 11:22:33 GMT -5
That's exactly why I chose to plant the single varieties. It's just too sad to see the big doubles after a storm.
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Post by nana on May 30, 2018 20:33:36 GMT -5
The word "bedraggled" comes to mind!
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Post by nana on Jun 3, 2018 20:10:27 GMT -5
Karitx--Here is a peony: I kind of surprised myself with just how lovely a picture this is--I'm not known for my photography! They come in all colors ranging from pure white all the way up to deepest red, with all gradations in between, and some are streaked or blends of colors. There are the singles, and there are giant powderpuff ones reminiscent of the tissue paper flowers you made in elementary school. This bloom is somewhere in between, a little smaller than usual because the plant is still recovering from being moved. Enjoy!
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Post by karitx on Jun 4, 2018 15:36:38 GMT -5
*swoon* Oh, it's beautiful! And I like the irises in the background, too. There are a couple of peonies listed as growing here, but I have my doubts since I have never seen anyone growing them. I will probably succumb to temptation at some point, though, just like I have to try every variety of lilac listed as requiring few chilling hours and heat tolerant.
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Post by cinnabar on Jun 4, 2018 22:02:32 GMT -5
a maroon peony and irises.
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Post by nana on Jun 5, 2018 14:09:47 GMT -5
*swoon* Oh, it's beautiful! And I like the irises in the background, too. There are a couple of peonies listed as growing here, but I have my doubts since I have never seen anyone growing them. I will probably succumb to temptation at some point, though, just like I have to try every variety of lilac listed as requiring few chilling hours and heat tolerant. The pink stuff mixed in with the irises is dame's rocket. Some people call it wild phlox, but I think that is another, extremely similar plant. It grows wild all over the place here, and pops up here and there wherever it can in my yard. I weed some of it out, but I always leave some too, because it is so pretty and also fragrant. It is gorgeous this time of year along the roadsides when you see a big swath of it, all pink and purple and white! You must have your own, heat seeking lovelies to make us northerners jealous, don't you?
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Post by Chuckie on Jun 5, 2018 15:09:43 GMT -5
a maroon peony and irises. You northern peeps, our irises and peonies are LONG GONE around these parts!!! I always THOUGHT we used those on the graves Decoration Day around here, but they sure never make it/last that long anymore!! VERY pretty, both of ye!!!! CHEERS! Chuckie
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Post by karitx on Jun 5, 2018 20:23:22 GMT -5
Those are gorgeous, too, cinnabar! Okay, I must try to find a Texas-proof peony! I'm not familiar with dame's rocket, but Dave's Garden says it will grow here. Hmmmm... We are currently extra hot and dry, but we do have a few things blooming. The black-eyed susans are going crazy, as is my vitex tree. I took a couple pictures yesterday, but it was overcast and the color is wrong. I will try again tomorrow morning. Oh, we are starting to get good garden produce, like tomatoes and peaches. And my blueberries are giving us a few every day. Does that help with the jealousy?
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Post by karitx on Jun 6, 2018 15:11:58 GMT -5
Okay, here's my attempt to create a little northern jealousy in response to the peonies. These are all from a couple months ago when the roses were blooming. I have more roses than this, but these are the oldest and they bloom the most. My very favorite rose, Souvenir de la Malmaison. It looks like it is made of tissue paper and smells divine. My giant rambling climber, Mermaid. I have it growing up an oak tree (it's at least 15' tall now), but it's hard to get pictures that show it. But in person, it is pretty impressive. Also, the bees love the big open blooms, which are about the size of my hand. Duchesse de Brabant. Supposedly Teddy Roosevelt's favorite rose. And another biggie that is hard to photograph well, Peggy Martin. This rose survived 2 weeks under seawater in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and profits from the sale of it went to raise money to rebuild New Orleans. Mine is trained around a pole and is about 7' high at the center and 12' wide (excluding the bits trailing on the ground) at this point.
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Post by pattyhunny on Jun 6, 2018 16:05:45 GMT -5
Your roses are beautiful! I just moved from Texas to lake eufaula in Oklahoma. I think I have too many deer and gophers to do roses again.
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Post by nana on Jun 6, 2018 19:52:13 GMT -5
Those are gorgeous, too, cinnabar! Okay, I must try to find a Texas-proof peony! I'm not familiar with dame's rocket, but Dave's Garden says it will grow here. Hmmmm... We are currently extra hot and dry, but we do have a few things blooming. The black-eyed susans are going crazy, as is my vitex tree. I took a couple pictures yesterday, but it was overcast and the color is wrong. I will try again tomorrow morning. Oh, we are starting to get good garden produce, like tomatoes and peaches. And my blueberries are giving us a few every day. Does that help with the jealousy? Yes, the jealousy is in full bloom! Your roses are gorgeous, I can almost smell them through the picture! Black-eyed susans, tomatoes--we won't be getting those til August! What is a vitex tree?
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Post by chipperhiker on Jun 6, 2018 20:16:02 GMT -5
They are all so beautiful, karitx, especially the very first one you posted, the Souvenir de la Malmaison. It's exquisite.
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Post by sporko on Jun 7, 2018 10:44:41 GMT -5
Those are gorgeous, too, cinnabar! Okay, I must try to find a Texas-proof peony! I'm not familiar with dame's rocket, but Dave's Garden says it will grow here. Hmmmm... We are currently extra hot and dry, but we do have a few things blooming. The black-eyed susans are going crazy, as is my vitex tree. I took a couple pictures yesterday, but it was overcast and the color is wrong. I will try again tomorrow morning. Oh, we are starting to get good garden produce, like tomatoes and peaches. And my blueberries are giving us a few every day. Does that help with the jealousy? Yes, the jealousy is in full bloom! Your roses are gorgeous, I can almost smell them through the picture! Black-eyed susans, tomatoes--we won't be getting those til August! What is a vitex tree? I've tried to make videos of the vitex. While Peggy Martin and Mermaid are full of bees, neither compares to the vitex. It's a bee madhouse. But they just don't show up so much on video. Kari is also the photographer so the quality of this is awful. vitex bees
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Post by karitx on Jun 7, 2018 15:19:51 GMT -5
Your roses are beautiful! I just moved from Texas to lake eufaula in Oklahoma. I think I have too many deer and gophers to do roses again. Ugh! I feel your pain. We don't have much trouble with deer, but the gophers destroy a lot around here. I lost my most fragrant rose last summer, Marchesa Boccella. I went out one day in the middle of summer and the formerly 4' tall shrub was a limp mass on the ground, with not a single root still attached.
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Post by karitx on Jun 7, 2018 15:25:12 GMT -5
Yes, the jealousy is in full bloom! Your roses are gorgeous, I can almost smell them through the picture! Black-eyed susans, tomatoes--we won't be getting those til August! What is a vitex tree? The vitex is our attempt at having something resembling lilacs here. Alas, while it puts on a pretty show, it isn't fragrant. Here's a little more info on them: aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/newsletters/hortupdate/2008/jun08/Vitex.htmlAnd here is a photo of ours from yesterday:
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Post by nana on Jun 7, 2018 20:55:23 GMT -5
Well that is a lovely, dainty little tree! Lilacs do have that fantastic fragrance, but they are big bruisers who shade less assertive plants out and send up suckers everywhere. Vitex looks to be well behaved and companionable.
It is always interesting to see what grows in different climates from your own. I remember the first time I went to Florida what a trip it was to see what I consider houseplants growing wild and rampant all over the place!
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Post by vaporvac on Jun 7, 2018 22:23:50 GMT -5
My lord! This has become a crazy beautiful Post. It'll be a while before we get BESusans, but my roses are only now finishing their first flush. I'm officially jealous kari! I love SDLM, but my cutting failed. I may just have to be happy with Mystic Beauty. I have many Cl. Clotilde Souperts and finally got my first blooms on Peggy Martin and a single bloom on DdB. It was nothing like your beauties, but I'm happy it survived the winter in its little pot! It was a gift along with the REAL Bloomfield Abundance from another rose nut. : )) I love the Vitex!!! Nana, I have the same feeling in Fl.!!! I go crazy for the hedges!
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Post by mach12 on Jun 7, 2018 22:38:58 GMT -5
You're right Vaporvac! I've really been enjoying the pictures too. Fantastic!
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Post by karitx on Jun 9, 2018 17:34:46 GMT -5
I have the Black Thumb of Death when it comes to house plants (and what I don't kill, the cats do), so everything in Florida is just "exotic" to me. But I do remember being stunned in New Orleans when we figured out that the large trees lining the streets were crepe myrtles. Doggoneit, vaporvac ! I had never heard of Mystic Beauty or Bloomfield Abundance. If I end up "needing" them, I am going to blame it all on you. One of my best performing roses, which I don't seem to have a good picture of, is Natchitoches Noisette. Here is a photo that doesn't really do it justice, because when it blooms, it BLOOMS:
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Post by nana on Jun 10, 2018 9:28:14 GMT -5
The Black Thumb of Death would be a great name for a rock band! (Thank you Dave Barry for bringing that category of language to my attention!) I'm afflicted by a related condition, The Green Thumb of Houseplant Avalanche. I am compelled to save and root every piece I trim off the christmas cactuses and philodendrons, every branchlet that falls off the jade plants...Every time I repot the African violets, I root a couple of the leaves "just in case." My windows are so crowded. Then I put everything outside for the summer and it gets twice as big. I just can't help it. I have started to place trimmings and cuttings in the yard, where they can grow for a few months, and then Nature takes its course all in due time. So which disease is worse? Who can say?
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Post by karitx on Jun 10, 2018 19:12:00 GMT -5
Ha! You could always send every visitor home with a plant, like a reverse hostess gift. "Thank you for delivering my new tv. Here's a jade plant!"
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Post by nana on Jun 13, 2018 19:18:26 GMT -5
Ha! You could always send every visitor home with a plant, like a reverse hostess gift. "Thank you for delivering my new tv. Here's a jade plant!" I love it! And as they walk bemusedly back to their vehicle I would be snidely chortling under my breath. Sucker!
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Post by nana on Jun 14, 2018 13:50:31 GMT -5
Pure eye candy for your viewing pleasure. These are some peonies in my daughter's yard:
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Post by nana on Jun 14, 2018 16:39:02 GMT -5
Peonies, siberian iris, and dames rocket: I know it's sideways. I had to take the picture sideways and I don't know how to fix it. Click on it and it will right itself, I think!
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Post by karitx on Jun 14, 2018 17:14:49 GMT -5
Oh, those are lovely, nana! We have been unusually hot and dry the last several weeks, so it's not quite as bloomy as it would normally be (we're not usually crispy until late July). I am loving all your cooler-climes photos!
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