How to Stretch the Peony Season

Late Season Peony Sarah Bernhardt

Peonies are one of America’s best-loved perennials. They’re also one of the easiest to grow! They can be planted almost anywhere, aren’t troubled by deer or insect pests, and will bloom for generations without a bit of attention.

Early Season Peony ‘Black Beauty’

Of course the best thing about peonies is their flowers, which are big (6 to 10” across), abundant (50 blossoms on a mature plant), come in gorgeous colors (shades of ivory, pink, rose and burgundy) and are wonderfully fragrant. Few flowers can rival the beauty of a big bouquet of peonies.

Depending where you live, peonies bloom in late spring or early summer. Climate and weather affect bloom time, but each variety also has its own genetic time clock, which determines whether it flowers early, mid or late in the peony season.

Late Season Peonies Sarah Bernhardt and Felix Crousse

Choosing peonies based on their bloom time, as well as their beauty, will let you enjoy having them in flower for as long as possible. 

Early Season Peony varieties include: Black Beauty, Bowl of Beauty, Purple Spider, Festiva Maxima and Buckeye Belle.

Mid-Season Peony varieties include: Lady Alexandra Duff, Bunker Hill, Duchess de Nemours, Sorbet, Lady Liberty, Celebrity, Red Supreme.

Late-Season Peony varieties include: Felix Crousse, Sarah Bernhardt, Dinner Plate.

Midseason Peony ‘Sorbet’

To see our complete selection of peonies at a glance, click HERE. For information about planting and growing peonies, read our Growing Guide for Peonies.