I received a bare root peony from a vendor. It has a lot of eyes on it and 3 firm roots. The crown is also firm but it is hollow, just a shell. It is as if it had rotted out and left a thin cover but, as I said, it is firm, not soft. The hole is so big that I could stick my hand in one side and my fingers would come out the other side. Is this normal? Does it put the plant at risk of rot over the winter?
I have never seen such a root. It looks like the main tuber was huge and old and rotted out but in the meantime formed other healthy tubers. And look at those huge eyes. It is almost as if you could cut it into two or three tubers cutting away the old dead tuber. No expert on dividing tubers. Only did it once or twice and it was only semi-successful.
Yes, there are a lot of eyes but they are emerging from a hollow crown and have less than half an inch of tissue under them. I just came across a picture that looks exactly like what I am dealing with and it is peony root rot. The only treatment is to destroy the peony and not plant any peonies in that soil again.
In addition, the second root I received also has a similar crown. I will be sending these back. It is very frustrating since they are replacements for peonies that I planted last fall and, when they bloomed, they were the wrong varieties.
The first picture is from Oregon State University showing root rot. The second picture is the second root I received.
I really cannot imagine why they would ever send such a plant. I didn't think about the possibility that the tubers you were sent could contain something that would pollute your garden soil. Really disappointing. Other than wanting something for what you paid them, I am sure you won't be dealing with them again. You should also report them on the Garden Watchdog here so no one else gets 'snookered'.
I will be reporting them - unfortunately they are Bannister/Peonies.net, a vendor who DGers have recommended and been very pleased with, which is why I used them. I have had nothing but problems with them...I don't know why since they have had such a good reputation here. Because they have a good reputation I have been hesitant to name them, knowing that mistakes happen. But the continuing errors, in addition to their rude responses to me, leave me no choice.
I had posted about the situation in June ( link below) but decided to wait until I received the replacements before rating them in the Garden Watchdog. Not only does this shipment of replacement peonies appear diseased, one of the replacement peonies is the wrong cultivar. They sent Festiva Maxima (which was the only correct one I received in the original order) instead of Raspberry Sundae, even though I was very clear in my emails about which cultivars needed to be replaced.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1364002/
That is really disappointing. I wonder if they have been bought out as so many of the online vendors have been. Not for peonies necessarily, but others that sell bulbs, tubers, and plants. Some, like American Meadows, have mixed reviews. They are great for say bulbs and tubers, but terrible for plants.
Bannister sent me two peonies two years ago, of which only one bloomed, and it was the wrong cultivar. They replaced it, but neither the first nor the second have bloomed. Peonies I put in last year from other companies bloomed.
I just changed my Watchdog review to reflect this. I am sorry that I may be one of the people upon whom you relied.
Donna
No H2O,
It is unfortunate that you've had such a negative experience. You stated that the tuber with the large hole was firm, not soft. Can the tuber be potted and monitored to see if it would do well?
When I have tubers that I'm concerned about, I pot them and leave them potted for 1-2 growing seasons outside before planting them in the garden.
The other question is that this appears to be an older tuber, and could what you're seeing be normal aging of an older part of the root, especially since it has formed new tubers with healthy appearing eyes?
I bought from Fina Peony Gardens last year for the 1st time, and they sent the most amazing, healthy, large tubers last fall, many of them that bloomed this spring in my garden.
I wish you the best with your plants, and hope that they do well.
Annette
Don't feel bad, Donna. If these roots had looked okay, I would have planted them (well, except the one labeled Festiva Maxima) and waited until next year to make sure they were right. If they didn't bloom the first spring, I would have waited another spring. I hate to make a rush judgement and post a bad review of a vendor if it isn't justified.
Annette, the roots are firm and the outer shell of the crown is firm (although very thin), i.e. it isn't mushy or oozing anything; but the entire core of the crown is gone - it is just empty space. It hasn't formed a new crown. The partial shell of the old crown is there with 3 firm large roots attached. The multitude of eyes are on what remains of the shell of the old crown. The crown itself is 90% hollow.
Even if it grew in a pot, I would not be willing to chance putting it into the ground because there is no treatment for peony crown rot other than destroying the plant and never putting another peony in the same soil.
Why on earth would any responsible person ship such a specimen? You have to wonder if they care at all or are concerned for their reputation. I think it's pretty disgraceful.
I've never seen such a specimen! The tubers are very large, compared to what I've ever received, but the areas of decay are unacceptable. It's really is unfortunate that such a specimen was shipped. Hopefully, the vendor will compensate you, and not have you ship the tuber back.
I emailed them about the condition of the plants and included pictures. I got a very polite email back agreeing that the conditions of those roots were not up to their standards. They are sending me a refund. Once I have received the funds, I will do a review on GW.
Now to find another source for Coral Charm and Raspberry Sundae. Any recommendations?
I'm very interested in the outcome of this. I've only ever ordered peonies from them, and only twice. The first set was spectacular. The second set, 2 Coral Charm, looked like good tubers but not only didn't they bloom, the plants look stunted. I've heard (here on DG) that Coral Charm can be fussy, so I'm waiting to see what happens next year.
Meanwhile, at least they acknowledge that there is a problem...
My Coral Charm has not performed well also. I will give it one more year where it is to recover from moving it twice already over the last few years. Then one more move (digging deeply for all storage and feeder roots). Then OUT.... I only have so much room for these guys. Not like other plants like dahlias that I can plant where ever I want each spring. And I have three new ones coming this fall along with a bunch of lilies.
Hi NoH2O- If you are thinking about buying in Western WA, I would recommend A&D Nursery near Snohomish. It's a little family run place looks like someones hobby took over a few decades ago. I got my Itoh Bartzella and 2 tree peonies from them some years ago. I visited and picked them out and ordered them in the spring, they mailed them at the proper time. The tree peonies were own-root, which was good because a few years later a bad winter killed one to the ground, but it just sprouted up again in the spring. A trip there could be combined with Molbaks Nursery, Wights, and Sky Nursery which are all worth visiting if you have some spare cash. Flower World is nearby too it but has less interesting perennials but lots of trees and shrubs. Actually that might be too many places in one day, as you live so far north. Anyway A&D does online too, and you can call and talk to a real person if need be.
I have also ordered from them and was well pleased with the plants.
Oh, don't tempt me with those King County nurseries! I lived in Bellevue for many years, near Wells Medina nursery. I can remember when the Herb Farm in Fall City was just an old house with some herbs in pots sitting on the front lawn for sale. Long, long time ago.
A&D nursery sounds very interesting. However, I just remembered Pure Peonies Nursery which sells chemical free plants, roots and flowers. They have over 175 varieties and are about 10 minutes away. Doh. I completely forgot about them. I could just pick up my peonies there instead of having them shipped. http://purepeonies.com/
I've read that Coral Charm spends the first year or so making a strong root system so don't expect blooms right away.
Don't get me started on dahlias - I love them. I grow about 30 different varieties. Yesterday on my walk I met a man who grows 550 dahlias. He only grows the big and dinnerplate varieties. And he lives in a condo! He also sells tubers but I have never bought any from him. I'm thinking about it though. I could just walk down the street and pick up my tubers and not worry about the weather and the mail. His website is http://www.bigdahlias.com/
My big challenge with dahlias this year is getting them to last more than a few days in a vase. Here's some of yesterday's cuttings:
Your dahlias are beautiful. You should post pics on the dahlia forum.
Hi No-Pure Peonies sounds like the best of all worlds- Chemical free, large choice, shop local!
I currently have no dahlias, I can't seem to take good care of them. If not deadheaded often they look crappy. Then I have to lift in fall which does not always happen. However, I broke down and ordered 'David Howard', every year I drool over the photos of this one and I think it would incorporate into my planting scheme well. Really, my peonies are much easier-deadhead once. Cut herbaceous types to ground once. Give some feeding mulch once. That I can usually do. The two tree peonies are even easier, but I did cut one to the ground this spring because last year it got flattened in a freak windstorm. It looks great again.
I placed an order with Pure Peonies and am waiting to hear back on a pickup date. I also received a complete refund of my original order from Bannister last week. I am glad the issue is resolved. I will be posting a review on GW and I want to think carefully about what I say. I don't know if I am the only person who has had so much trouble with them - I almost hope that I am. There are fewer and fewer vendors these days and I hate to see a good vendor go bad.
I am getting 10 yards of compost delivered this week; it will be good timing for planting the new peonies and also the new plants I hope to buy when I go on a nursery hop with some ladies from the garden club on Wednesday. I'll be putting cardboard down on a lot of lawn and piling compost on top of it so by spring I will have a big new bed all ready to go - more dahlias! Yay! Also more peonies, roses, perennials, etc.
I moved back to the PNW from Ohio about 2 years ago. I left behind a huge 25 year old tree peony, Hana Kisoi. I bought it as a little bare root plant in a box for $12 at Sears Hardware. When I left it was over 5ft tall and wide and each spring had 120+ blooms that were 8 to 10 inches in diameter. It was stunning to see in full bloom but it produced so much pollen that I couldn't get to close to it.
The Puget Sound Dahlia Association has an excellent monthly guide to planting dahlias. I highly recommend it. You can find the information for buying it here: http://www.pugetsounddahlias.org/psdapub.html
Mary, I confess that I have been lurking in the dahlia forum for years. I used to be very active on DG but the last number of years have been very stressful with family issues and I just didn't have the time or energy to post. And so many of the old regulars have disappeared... Hopefully I will get back on there very soon.
At this point I am growing about 3 dozen dahlias. I do dig up and save the tubers and give some away to garden friends and sell a lot of extras at the garden club sale. This helps bring in cash to support my addiction.
These are pictures of Hana Kisoi. The picture of the entire plant was taken in 2005. It has grown quite a bit since then and each year increased the bud count by at least 10.
That is absolutely beautiful. Have you planted another in Everson?
p.s. I grew up in Ohio, quite a different climate! Regarding family stress- I lurked a lot when I first started, and was doing a lot of stressful elder care. I found I could dip into DG at any time of the day or night, and my exhaustion or grumpiness did not have to infect others. Even though I had little time for gardening, I learned a lot.
It would have broken my heart to have left such a gorgeous peony. I have only a couple of tree peonies now and they haven't bloomed yet. Maybe next year.
I joined DG in 2003 and was very active for many years. At one point when Dave was still the owner he posted a list of people watching the most threads (or was it participating in the most threads? Or starting the most threads? Can't remember LOL). I think I was in the top ten.
I don't really miss Hana Kisoi too much, hard as it is to believe. It produced so much pollen that I couldn't really get too close without triggering a massive allergy attack.
I went to Pure Peonies and bought Coral Charm, Moon River, and Myrtle Gentry. MG is supposed to have a tea rose scent so I am looking forward to that. They make and use biochar on all their plants and swear by it. She gave me a quart bag for free so it will be interesting to see how it does. I also bought Itoh peony Yankee Doodle Dandy at another nursery.
Last fall I purchased another Itoh, Kopper Kettle. Unfortunately, when it bloomed this spring it was white with purple/magenta flares. This spring I planted a NOID tree peony. It is a yellow double. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
I have 10 yards of gorgeous compost to spread. Some will go on existing flower beds and some will be used to create new beds. I lay cardboard on the lawn and then put compost on top of that. By spring I will have new beds ready to plant. This compost doesn't have any weed seeds at all which makes it really nice to work with.
I still have a number of new perennials to plant, existing perennials to divide and transplant, and spring bulbs to get in the ground. It always sounds like such fun when I am ordering but now that I am 65 I find that I don't get things in the ground nearly as quickly as I used to. Those 8 hour days of physical labor are history!
And when that is all done, there are all the dahlias to be dug, divided and stored. I always look forward to winter thinking I will sit in front of the fire and knit and read and rest but it seems like spring arrives before I even get my fanny in the rocking chair.
Gee, you sound like me. lol. It's the only way to go, literally.
I bought a tree peony this fall and it had the neatest little hole right through the middle. Didn't look like rot. Looked like it had grown around a 1" dowl. I am thinking maybe another root they were able to extract. Looks clean & healthy and very large with pips. I put it in the best spot I could find. So we will see next spring. I don't expect flowers although it is clearly at least a couple of years old, but I am hoping for a good plant.
Glad you decided to contact them to give them a chance to correct their mistake. I believe Raspberry Sundae is pretty widely available -- Coral Charm maybe slightly less so. Klehm's (songsparrow.com) has both, and has a three for the price of two sale going through Nov. 12, 2014.
