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Peony

Paeonia lactiflora
Also known as: Garden Peony, Chinese Peony

Peony is a flower in the Paeoniaceae family. It grows best in full sun with medium moisture, and is listed for USDA zones 3-8.

Varieties

1 · sorted by days to maturity
  • Herbaceous Peony

    PROPAGATION CATEGORY: Tuberous root (not currently in seed catalog). Bloom season: Late spring to early summer. Attracts: Bees, ants. Flower meaning: Romance, prosperity, honor.

    The Peony (Paeonia lactiflora) is a long-lived perennial with large, lush, often fragrant blooms in white, pink, coral and red. Plants can live for decades. Grown from tuberous root divisions planted in fall, not from seed (seed-grown peonies take 4-7 years to bloom).

    Growing notes: Botanical name: Paeonia lactiflora|Hardiness zones: 3-8|Propagation: root division (tuberous roots)|Sun needs: Full sun|Water needs: Medium|Mature height: 2-3 feet|Spacing: 36 inches|Bloom season: Late spring to early summer

Family
Paeoniaceae
Category
Flower
Form
Bush
Lifecycle
perennial
Zone
3-8
Height
2–3 ft
Spread
2–4 ft
Sun
Full sun
Water
Medium

Plan your peony planting

Add peony to a free GardenDraft plan and get sow, transplant, and harvest dates computed for your ZIP code — with a drag-and-drop bed layout and reminders when it’s time to plant.

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Growing timeline

Propagation
Division
Schedule anchor
First Frost

Care & troubleshooting

No curated care & troubleshooting advice for peony yet. Our extension-sourced library currently focuses on common edible crops; we're expanding it over time.