Garden peony
Paeonia lactiflora Pall.
Also called garden peony, Chinese peony.
Long-lived perennial with large, often fragrant late-spring flowers and handsome foliage through fall. Can outlive the gardener.
Size over time
Typical landscape size 0.6–0.9 m (2–3 ft) tall and 0.6–0.9 m (2–3 ft) wide; slow growth, about 4 years to maturity. Intermediate sizes use the planner’s growth curve (k = 0.12) from the #1 install size.
Bloom
Pink flowers, May–Jun (northern-hemisphere months; timing shifts with region and season).
| Plant | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garden peony : May–Jun |
Design notes
- Set eyes no more than 5 cm deep or it will not bloom.
- Needs winter chill; poor in the Deep South and low desert.
- Use rings for heavy double flowers.
Regions
Native range: Northeastern Asia.
Not recorded as native to any of the three pilot regions.
Native status describes where the species occurs naturally. It is not a promise that it suits a particular garden; site conditions decide that.
Related plants
Plan with Garden peony
Place it in a design, check it against your zone, light and moisture, and see it at year three and year ten.