Guerrilla Gardening

“Life begins on the other side of despair.” – Jean-Paul Sartre

Ratta Tat Tat Tat!

Honk! Honk! Honk!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Nope! This discussion’s subject matter, for once, isn’t about Harley Davidsons, car alarms, or over-sized garbage trucks. Today, we’re lauding the out-of-this-world display put on by the peony.

Most gardeners are familiar with the “Grandma Garden” favorite that buries itself in impossibly luscious double blooms. But, those monstrous old perennials in Midwest farmyards are unfortunately just glorious disasters. Crushed under their own enthusiasm, the blooms inevitably collapse to the ground like a dying firework – beautiful but spent all too quickly.

Instead, seek out the semi-double or, even better, the single blooming varieties of Paeonia lactiflora. How does one find them? Every garden center carries a wide variety of peonies, so start reading tags. Anything labeled “single bloom” is for you. The lighter weight bloom is still glorious, but stands up much better to all kinds of weather.

Once the plant’s spent petals have dropped to the ground with an audible crash, the mature plant often develops wonderfully funky seed-heads adding “season-extension” interest to the garden. Judiciously snip a few leaves away to better reveal the developing heads.

Speaking of “season-extension,” peony foliage is a wonderful addition to the garden both early and late in the season. The emerging spring foliage on many varieties is a dark red maturing to deep green. Then, through the rest of the season, the plant maintains its rich green leaves and tidy rounded shape without requiring the constant shearing of the standard green ball. Peonies are really where it’s at!

Blond? Brunette? Red? Buy all three and plant ‘em all in the same well-amended hole to create a riot of color. But, beware, peonies are slow to mature, so empty that moth-filled wallet, because you really can buy yourself some big love.