P.EONIA 



earth so as to start with fresh unimpoverished soil next 

 to the roots. The flowers produced on small divided 

 plants are likely to be imperfect, but when thoroughly 

 established a plant will continue to bloom if undis- 

 turbed for upward of twenty years. During the period 

 of blooming an inconspicuous wire support is desirable, 

 as a heavy rain often beats down the flowers. 



The host of ancient and modern varieties available, 

 ranging from purest white to deepest crimson, in such 

 a diversity of form 'and size, afford great opportunity 

 for the making of extensive color schemes. Peonies do 

 fairly well in partial shade, which prolongs and intensi- 

 fies the color of the bloom, and therefore may be used 

 to advantage to brighten up somber nooks. The period 

 of blooming for herbaceous peonies ranges from the 

 middle of May through June. They grow 1 to 4 feet 

 high and are therefore suitable for planting in front of 

 shrubbery, along driveways, and are especially pleas- 

 ing when entering into a distant vista. The richly 

 colored shoots, which find their way up through the 

 soil in the early spring, have considerable value for 

 striking effect. When planted in a border with fall- 

 blooming perennials, such as phlox and funkia, their 

 rich glossy foliage is very effective. The old flowers 

 should be cut off, so that no unnecessary seed follicles 

 will be formed, and thereby exhaust the plant. It is 

 important to remove the faded foliage on all peonies 

 in November so that it may not interfere with the 

 next year's shoots. 



Because peony buds admit of being shipped long dis- 

 tances without water, and arrive in good condition, 

 they are now used very extensively on -Decoration Day 

 and for June weddings. When cut in tight buds and 

 closely wrapped in paraffin paper, some varieties can be 

 held in cold storage for over a month and then open 

 up very satisfactorily. 



For forcing, lift the plants in September and place 

 in a coldframe where they will be accessible when the 

 time for forcing arrives. Wlien brought under glass, a 

 uniform temperature of 55 to 60 should be main- 

 tained. By feeding well with liquid manure, strong 

 blooms can be produced in eight weeks. A two years' 

 rest is necessary before the plants are forced again. To 

 secure extra-fine blooms on double-flowering varieties, 

 remove the lateral buds as soon as formed. \Vhen the 

 first lateral bud is retained instead of the terminal one, 

 a later period of blooming is secured. 



Diseases. (A. C. Beal.) 



Among the peony diseases, the most prevalent and 

 destructive is the botrytis blight, which attacks the 

 stems, buds, and leaves. Early in the spring the young 

 stems are attacked at the surface of the ground. The 

 tissue turns black, and later the stems wilt and fall 

 over. Sometimes this trouble is seen as late as the fol- 

 lowing season. The use of green manure appears to 

 favor the attacks of the disease, and only well-rotted 

 manure or mineral fertilizers should be employed. 

 Later, the young flower-buds are attacked, and these 

 turn black and dry up. This is the so-called "bud- 

 blast." When the buds are not attacked until they are 

 well developed, they turn brown and fail to open. The 

 petals are then found to be a dark brown rotten mass, 

 and this is known as the "bud-rot." In very wet sea- 

 sons, as high as 80 to 90 per cent of the buds may be 

 thus affected. Even the flowers may be discolored by 

 spots resulting from this fungus. The leaves are 

 usually the last to be attacked, and the symptoms are 

 large irregular spots which become brown and dry. 



While control methods have not been devised against 

 this and other peony diseases, it is probable that sani- 

 tary measures will prove to be most practicable. The 

 prompt and thorough removal of the wilted stems and 

 rotted buds, together with the complete destruction 

 by fire of all leaves and stems in the fall, will tend to 

 lessen the extent of diseases the following year. For an 



P^ONIA 



2433 



account of peony diseases by a specialist, see Whetzel, 

 "American Florist," April 10, 1915. 



alba. 19. 

 albo-plena, 15. 



albiflora, 8. 

 amaranthescens, 16. 

 Andersonii, 18. 

 anemoneflora, 15. 

 angustiloba, 6. 

 anomala, 14. 

 arborea, 5. 

 arietina, 18. 

 Banksii, 5. 

 Baxteri, 18. 

 blanda, 15. 

 Brownii, 4. 

 califomica, 4. 

 Cambessedesii, 12. 

 chinensis, 8. 

 corallina, 11. 

 coriacea, 10. 

 cretica, 18. 



A. Fls. yeUow or orange. 



1. lutea, Franch. (P. Delavayi var. lutea, Finet & 

 Gagnep.). St. woody, short, the plant glabrous: Ivs. 

 ternately parted, coriaceous, strongly nerved, glaucous 

 beneath^ the segms. obovate-oblong and cut or more 





2721. Single peony 



or less lobed above the middle: fls. 2-4 in. across, termi- 

 nal; golden yellow; outer sepals leaf like and long, the 

 inner ones orbicular and yellowish green; petals 6-10, 

 orbicular, concave, the outer ones irregularly crenate; 

 filaments short, the golden yellow anthers long-linear: 

 carpels 3, turgid, glabrous, the style short and recurved. 

 China. B.M. 7788. Gn. 61, p. 267 (note); 76, p. 416. 

 F.S.R. 1:230. R.H. 1906:14. 



Var. superba, Lemoine. Seedling from P. lutea, with 

 larger fls. (34 in. across) and with carmine base to 

 petals when the plant attains age: Ivs. bronze-red 

 during development, but becoming deep green. G.C. 

 III. 44: suppl. July 18 (1908). 



2. Mlokosewitschii, Lomak. Herbaceous perennial, 

 the sts. stout and glabrous: Ivs. 2-ternate, the Ifts. or 

 segms. broad-oblong or nearly elliptic, short-pointed 

 or acuminate, 34 in. long, dark bluish green above and 

 short-pubescent, pale glaucous beneath, the nerves 

 and margins red : fls. 4-5 in. across, yellow, on glabrous 

 reddish pedicels 4 in. long; sepals unlike, one of them 

 oblong-lanceolate and constricted above the base and 

 the other nearly orbicular; petals about 8, roundish, 



