Number 3 
THE CHOICEST OF THE PEONIES? THEIR PLANTING AND CARE TO YIELD SEVEN WEEKS 
OF UNSURPASSED BLOOM-SOMETHING OF THE PEONY’S INTERESTING EARLY HISTORY 
by Grace Tabor 
Photographs by Nathan R. Graves 
but if you are still unen¬ 
thused, consider its won¬ 
derful hardiness and per¬ 
manence and its beauty of 
foliage when not in bloom 
and be induced to select 
and plant now, four to six 
plants at least and as 
many more as you have 
room for, of this number 
of varieties. 
The old, old peony of 
homestead gardens is 
Pceonia officinalis —strong 
growing, strong smelling 
and strong in color ; con¬ 
sequently less deserving, 
perhaps, of great popu¬ 
larity than its younger and 
130 
F LOWERS continually 
for six — perhaps seven 
—weeks, of the quality 
excelled by nothing else 
in the garden, and rivaled 
by only a few of its choic- 
e s t occupants — this is 
what the peony will yield. 
Moreover, it is the luck¬ 
iest of plants to have 
around, according to an¬ 
cient belief; for where is 
a peony plant there no evil 
spirit may approach. 
Surely here are two rea¬ 
sons for cultivating it that 
are different enough to 
suit the widest extremes 
of garden temperament; 
Peonies are among the beautiful flowers that thrive in partial shade or full sun 
