Any way to get bloomed peonies in October?

[Ryan Hicks]

My fiancee and I are getting married this October. She had her heart set (as brides often do) on having beautiful peonies in the wedding -- even if it was super-expensive peonies from New Zealand in her bouquet. However, today she learned from her florist (a fairly large one here in Seattle) that they are unable to get peonies from any of their wholesalers at this time.

Any help would be appreciated. I'm eternally optimistic, but I sincerely doubt that I could get my peony plants to bloom in four weeks, no matter how I controlled their environment. If you know of any way to order these from anywhere in the world, I (and my bride-to-be) would be extremely grateful.

Thanks for the consideration..

-ryan

[Pam - gardengal]

I'm not sure if anyone can be of much help. You can successfully hold peony buds in cold storage for months at a time (and have blooming peonies in December, for example), but it requires planning ahead. And it's a little late in the game now. A large florist in a large metropolitan area like Seattle should have access to pretty much anything that is available to the trade, regardless of origin. If you have a business license or know someone that does (perhaps your caterer?), contact Evergreen Wholesale Florist (206/624-9111) or Seattle Wholesale Floral (206/285-2425). If they can't get them, then you may have to make other plans.

pam - gardengal

[gregpresley]

Peonies are definitely out of season. However, this is the very peak of Dahlia blooming season, and a few varieties have the same flower-form as peonies. (I think they are sometimes even called peony-flowering). It woulnd't be an exact match, and wouldn't have the nice fragrance of peonies, but as far as appearance goes, it would make much the same impression. I'll see if I can find any links to peony-flowered dahlia types.

[Sheila]

Pam - gardengal wrote: You can successfully hold peony

Can you do this in a regular refrigerator, and how do you do this, just cut the bud and put it in water? I love peonies and would like to be able to extend the time that I could have fresh peonies in the house.

Sheila

[Pam - gardengal]

Cut when in bud, wrap loosely and gently in a barely moistened paper towel and store in the refrigerator crisper in an open plastic bag. Be sure not keep anything else in the frig that can emit ethylene gas - any kind of fruit, even tomatoes. This will cause the flowers to rot. Once they are removed, recut the stems and place in a tall container of lukewarm water. They should open within a day.

I have to say I've never tried this myself, but I saw it on an episode of "The Perennial Gardener" and I was pretty impressed - they had blooming peonies for a Christmas bouquet.

pam - gardengal

[Sheila]

Thanks Pam,

Next year, I'll try this.