OUR UNIQUE GUARANTEE 
We will replace with three, 
every plant blooming untrue to description 
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o THE HERBACEOUS PEONY 
The herbaceous peony of today stands unchallenged as 
the most popular of hardy plants, and its friends who know 
its possibilities and its many good qualities are willing to 
back it against all comers as the best and most beautiful 
flower that grows. Its popularity has increased by leaps and 
bounds in the United States during the last two decades 
since the new improved varieties have been developed and 
become known. There are at present some 2,000 varieties of 
Japanese, French, Dutch, English and American origin; the 
public has been quick to appreciate the improved varieties, 
and demand the best; till now it holds full sway during 
June, which is becoming rather the month of peonies than 
of roses. 
Peonies range in color from cream and purest white 
through the various shades of pink, lilac, rose and red to the 
deepest carmine, purple and maroon, in every possible com¬ 
bination of shade and form. Size varies from four to eight 
inches in diameter. Most of them have a delightful frag¬ 
rance. 
CULTURE 
This is one of the strong points. Nothing is easier to 
grow. As contrasted with the rose, chrysanthemum, and 
carnation, which can be perfected only under the skillful care 
of the expert florist, the peony needs but to be put into good 
rich soil and left alone, where for eight, ten or even twenty 
years it will increase in size and beauty each year. If given 
a mulch of manure in the late fall, which is left on all winter, 
the added enrichment of the soil will perhaps yield more 
and better blooms, but it is not needed as a protection. 
When dormant in early fall they can be shipped long dis¬ 
tances without injury. It is possible to transplant and ship 
them in the spring, but we do not recommend it, as they then 
undergo a severe set-back, and do not bloom as freely for 
several years. The very best time is September, and that is 
when we begin filling orders. 
They should be planted with eyes two to three inches 
below the surface and the ground pressed firmly about the 
roots. They can be divided as small as desired, so long as 
each piece has at least one good strong eye on a piece of tuber. 
VARIETIES 
In the beginning of our nursery we carried a limited 
number of Peonies, but as early as 1888 had in cultivation 
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