My eldest sister lives in the Matanuska Valley in Alaska where the world's largest
cabbages are grown. I recently received these images in my email. It seems that this year, Dirce's peonies are rivaling the cabbages for size! Because of their size and the recent rain there, the flowers were falling to the ground so they got rescued for the vase. This one is posing on the seat of a chair. That's got to be over a foot around.
There's a reason that they call this peony flower type a bomb! It took two large vases to accommodate these three blooms.
All of the peonies in my garden are but a memory. It's nice to know gardeners in the north who are enjoying them still.
Hope you enjoyed these giants from the north!
HOLY COW!!!! Those are some fabulous peonies! Magnificent
ReplyDeleteI'd never seen peonies so large. I get the most interesting images in my email!
DeleteWow! Those are incredible!
ReplyDeleteAlmost gives one peonies envy!
DeleteAn explosion of color: perfect gift for the 4th of July. (I wonder if they are fragrant)
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure.
DeleteGood lord!
ReplyDeleteI know, right?
DeleteUnbelievable! Your sister should submit those flowers to the Guinness world records people.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea!
DeleteWhooa!
ReplyDeleteMy reaction exactly!
DeleteThey are exquisite. There's an old pun that applies here, you know what it is.
ReplyDeleteI do wish I could grow them because they were a childhood fav. Festiva Maxima was the best but the pink ones smelled so good.
I think I do!
DeleteSorry you can't grow them there as they are such wonderful plants. I used to grow the big forms but lately, I'm liking the singles and semi doubles.
Can your sister see Sarah Palin from her house?
ReplyDeleteAwesome peonies.
Yes! They both live in Wasilla! (which is "all I saw" spelled backward - go figure)
DeleteThey are fabulous! Do they have any perfume?
ReplyDeleteI don't think they do. Sad.
DeleteWowser! Those are some enormous peonies!
ReplyDeleteThey really are giants. Wowzers.
ReplyDeleteAnd pink, just for you Grace!
DeleteMy "bomb" peony doesn't get quite that big but does flop badly. I like the smaller peonies better, even though the bombs do have so many petals.
ReplyDeleteThe bombs were created for the cut flower industry and I like them best in a vase as they always topple over in the garden. For gardens, I like some of the simpler ones, too!
DeleteAmazing what all that summer light can do. I have that same chair pad in green and (just for a reality check) the peony is easily 12" around. Would dinner plate Dahlias be the size of platters?
ReplyDeleteI think that the peonies also like the cool nights. If I recall correctly, the larger varieties of dahlias also grow well there.
DeleteThose are fantastic! I'm amazed that they get so much in a place where summer is famously short.
ReplyDeleteWhile the frost free dates are comparatively short, summer days are endless. It's the land of the midnight sun and all, so plants develop very quickly in the nearly constant light.
DeleteWow!
ReplyDeleteYep, peonies are fleeting, but there is always something to take their place, like roses!
My niece, Alison, who also lives there, says that her roses are just beginning to show color. Isn't the progression of blooms in the summer a sweet thing?
DeleteNow THOSE are the peonies I remember from my childhood! Beautiful!
ReplyDelete