Chinese Peony, Garden Peony 'Monsieur Jules Elie'

Hybridized and introduced by Crousse in 1888. Love this peony. It has everything you could want in a flower; beauty, fragrance, easy car...Read Moree, etc. One of my favorites.

Lee R. Bonnewitz Peony and Iris catolog of 1928:
M. JULES ELIE (Crousse). A very large silvery pink Peony with wide guards surrounding a large bunch of comparatively narrow incurved petals, something like a monster chrysanthemum. It is very tall, and has strong stems, but the blooms grow so very large that the tall strong stems cannot support them. One of the most valuable show flowers in the world, and when properly supported it attracts a great deal of attention as a garden plant. $1.50.

Per the APS website:
MONS. JULES ELIE (Crousse, 1888) - Double - Pink - Early. Tall. Moderate fragrance. Very large. Light rose-pink of the dull-opaque quality seen in pink chrysanthemums; broad, smooth guard petals; center incurved and silvered with light grayish pink. Very free-flowering; stems lax and loose. Foliage light green. One of the most popular of all peonies. Its stems are bad for garden use, but it is most effective when cut.

This plant is glorious! Grows very healthy in zone 7 here, doubling in size til it reaches three feet high. The flowers are simply sple...Read Morendid. They reach over 8" in diameter, and smell delicious! Tons of flowers per plant. My only complaint is that they are weighed down by sudden rain. Definitely need to be staked.

Has voloptuous three-tiered blooms. The fragrance is subtle.

I have three of these plants and they are beautiful! Not much care of any kind once established. I have had to move them a couple of time...Read Mores and had no trouble.