hi!
I have been wanting to purchase 'sorbet' double peonies now, for two years. I have always balked at the prices. I have seen them for $20-$30 for one three bud peony.
I have scoured the catalogs and internet, and found my really good deal!
Dutch Gardens is now offering them for $6.47
I bought a ton!
Check it out, before they run out:
http://www.dutchgardens.com/department.asp?DeptPGID=19603
'Sorbet' double peony(and others) for GREAT price!
Thanks for the information. I just ordered a trio of them. Seems delivery is in 30 days due to the plants coming from Canada
You might want to check your local Costco. They have an assortment of varieties at really decent prices. There were three Chinese tree peony cultivars at about $8 each. Several mixed boxes with either two or four plants for $8 and several selections with three plants (single cultivar) for (you guessed it) $8. I got Nymphe, Bowl of Beauty and the tree peonies.
I also noticed that Lowe's had gotten in a few peonies but didn't really pay a lot of attention to the cultivars. I think it was the old European and American doubles mostly.
And finally Frank's has started putting out their spring plants. I will probably end up with a few of their Japanese tree peonies at full price. Sometimes its not worth the risk of waiting...well went back and looked and I think I will wait...they look really young for the $15 asking price.
This message was edited Mar 10, 2004 4:50 PM
Seedpicker,
I just picked up a 3-pack of Sorbet at Walmart for $5.88. Each are supposed to have 2/3 eyes but two of them had at least 4. I don't usually go for the doubles like I do the singles and Japanese but Sorbet is really a gorgeous flower. Supposedly imported from Holland so the chances are these are true to name.
skatayama
In my zone 5, they are at Costco too.
I didn't see any bowl of beauty ...... I'd sure like to get that one so I'll look again.
I got Nippon Beauty, Krinkled White (both singles) Mousieur jules elie and Madame emilie debatene. (dbls)
I can't find anything on the internet about Madame emilie debatene ...............
Anyone know when it is safe for me to plant these? The only Peonies I have ever grown were ones dug from my Mother's garden (the common dbl white). My mother is gone now, and I wish I had taken them with me when we moved, but any peony will remind me of here and her father who both loved them.
Skatamaya, your WalMart is better stocked than ours. We had some rather puny looking varieties (not 'Sorbet') for $3-something each. (Not a three-pack, and what they had looked pretty dried out and shriveled.) Oh well.....
Tree_climber, peonies should do fine in your climate.
I'd love to find 'Bowl of Beauty' for under $10-$12. (While I'm at it, I'd also like to find a fernleaf peony for a decent price; looks like everybody wants $30-$50 for 'em. Sigh...)
I've never ordered peonies from Gilbert Wild, but they *do* have a good selection, and if you take advantage of one of their combo offers, you can get some nice varieties for a reasonable price. If nothing else, their catalog is a good reference for many peony cultivars ;o)
I am in Texas, zone 7b - I planted 'Sarah Bernhardt' last Fall in hopes I would coax a sprout....so far nothing. Is it too early? What peonies would be good here? I have always loved 'Sorbet'...!
Shearpamala-
I planted Sarah Bernhardt last year, and they are not up, yet. I did dig down, and found red pointed shoots, just like there should be, just not poked up throughout the ground, yet. My dancing butterflies have already poked up and are about 8 inches tall. Must depend upon the variety, but I know for sure that Sarah's are alive, just late to come up. It was suggested to me, that I put ice over them here and there during the winter, to make them think its cold(not Texas cold), and that they should bloom better. I haven't tried it, yet, as I'd like to see how they do on their own, first. I'll try that if I have problems getting them to bloom...
Dig down a bit and check to see if yours are alive. I do know that in Texas they are only supposed to be one inch below the soil, not several as the directions may have said. They won't get enough cold exposure if planted deeper than one inch here in Texas. You may want to replant closer to the surface, if yours are deep.
Thanks - I'll dig a little and check on them. I can't remember how deep I planted them, but probably followed the directions...
Terry, do you feel like running a quick co op? LOL
I would, but, I've got my daylilies to take care of.
Anyway. I ordered several things from blooming bulb last fall, as well as the previous year, and everything was fantastic--huge dafs and tulip bulbs.
They have several different varities of Peonies.
Here is Bowl of Beauty.
http://www.bloomingbulb.com/products/ProductDetail.asp?ProductKey=563
if 25 people order, thats only 3.26 each plus double shipping, but might be worth it.
Sarah Bernhardt for 2.43 (if you order 25)
http://www.bloomingbulb.com/products/ProductDetail.asp?ProductKey=103
Maybe combine peonies with their asiatic lilies... ;-)
I wish I had thought of them last fall for my co op, I think I could have gotten a little bit more variety from them for about the same price.
Actually, I might be up for one over the summer for fall shipping...I'd prefer to wait until then to plant, anyway; plus I have to get the Brunnera co-op out of the way next week ;o)
Well, the nice thing about starting now is that we have some time to look for possible sources. My one concern about BloomingBulb's plants would be the size - I skimmed quickly through but I didn't see # of eyes in their info. Personally, I'd rather pay a little extra for a minimum of 3-5 eyes, and possibly larger, depending on price.
I can see where there might be room for two co-ops: one for those who want to start a collection with some of the most popular varieties, and a "connoisseur's co-op" for those looking for the rarer varieties - which won't be cheap, but could be less-expensive through a group purchase. In all likelihood it would mean dealing with two different companies. And of course, some of us might want some from both, lolol...
I'm in!! :)
Don't forget me when you get these co-ops going, I'd be very interested.
Well, it looks like it's time to start some preliminary work: list your gotta-have's (and for my beleagured brain, please indicate tree or herbaceous ;o)
And if you know of some good sources for those on your list, provide those, too. We'll start narrowing it down once we get an idea of what everybody's wanting.
Please keep in mind three things:
a) we have to get the go-ahead from Dave. (Yes, even for me!)
b) we may need to be a little flexible on varieties to meet the supplier(s) minimums.
c) those of you in Michigan and northwards have a MUCH different planting season than I do here in Tennessee. We'll need to take every participant's zone into consideration on shipping date.
Michigan, I guess that would be me. Keep me in mind, but don't make your decisions based upon my location. If it works out great, but that definately could be a problem.
I'm just getting started with peonies anyways, so will love seeing the list of favorites and must haves you guys suggest.
count me in on the co-op.
oops I forgot about your Brunnera co-op.
Blooming bulb says theirs are 2-3 eye. I may go ahead and order a few from them and let ya know what they look like.
:-)
I would be interested in a peony co-op, and looking for a good price on a fern peony. Thanks, legit
i'm brand new. live on maine's southern coast, 5b and love, love, love peonies. have ordered from gilbert wild and have received some honkers. they have several peony sales throughout the season and if you are looking for something not listed, you can inquire as to its availability; i've done it with daylilies and have been quite successful. i have a phiiosophical adversion to supporting chains but i dumped my integrity last year to purchase some decent peonies and clematis from home depot.
several years ago when i was getting my master gardener's badge, we had our classes at the maine audobound-sp? where there were zillions of unidentified peonies, as it had apparently been a sizable peony farm long ago. there was a request for an individual to research and log all the cultivars which sure was tempting. my point of this vignette is that someone must have done it and i would imagine it might be a wonderful resource which i will look into.
i think someone asked what the appropriate time for planting these beauties is and i have unfailingly been instructed to limit all peony activity to fall.
would someone be kind enough to explain what is involved in a coop? any chance to cash in on the brunnera?
does anyone belong to the national society of peony lovers and if so, what wonderful info and materials might they share?
would anyone want to share divisions in the fall or is this what you meant by coop?
back to gilbert wild, in addition to buying individual species, i bought the package offering 3 nameless ones of one color for $10 and thought it was an incredible deal. i plan to continue doing that and then attempting to identify them once they age.
i am also looking for sources of pink lily-of-the-valley. how about a daylily coop or for that matter, my greed is such that i want everything and anything!!!!!
i'm looking for recommended sources for daylilies, clematis and iris. i saw a new, popular daylily offered for $48 in oakes and $8 in wild's. oake's stuff does look gorgeous and comments support large sizes. any suggestions regarding protocol or anything significant would be gratly appreciated. i have seen where individuals offer a specific plant that might be invasive but how does one access formalized plant exchanges?
thank you for indulging my babble and endless questions.
catherine
We just ended a daylily co op today. Keep watching, I'm sure there will be lots more co ops coming this summer. Go here to find out all about co ops and how they operate. Visit the co op forum to see some of the great co ops we've had here at Daves.
http://davesgarden.com/coop_primer/
And you can go here to read about trading with others.
http://davesgarden.com/trading_primer/
Welcome to Daves
Melissa
Is there any chance of a Paeonia obovata in the co-op? I sure would like to get one! Sandy
Catherine, I took the liberty of breaking up your post into paragraphs - long posts can become difficult to taken in, especially if they're not broken up a bit so the reader can "come up for air" every now and then. (I'm a site administrator, which is how I have access to do that ;o)
Peonies are supposedly best planted in the fall; planting them in the spring, or disturbing them mid-season can disrupt their bloom cycle for several years. I've read several books, authored by experts in this genus who consistently give this same advice. Why are Peonies this way? I dunno, but I tend to believe the experts - I can't think of any reason they would have to tell us a fib...
Melissa gave spot-on answers to some of your questions. The Brunnera co-op is definitely closed: the plants are en route, and every one of them has been spoken and paid for.
Co-ops do take place quite frequently; check the Co-op forum frequently for new ones.
For recommended sources, check the Garden Watchdog - you'll find categories for each of the plants you mentioned, and you can compare the various ratings (by gardeners just like us) on the companies listed.
If you have a question about a particular vendor or type of plant, you can always ask: there are forums for daylilies, iris, and roses as well as this one for peonies. (Cross-posting the same question in several forums is gently discouraged...) Welcome, and please let us know if we can answer any other peony questions you have ;o)
I think Brent & Becky's Bulbs has a pink Lily-of-the-Valley...
I'm definately in, if there's a peony co-op. I'd love some tree peonies.
DeeS
I'd be interested in a co-op.....
Love a fern leaf,checked out sources last year but all the good priced ones were wholesale only
also looking for singles
I'd be interested in the co-op as well. Reg. & tree peonys. Thanks.