First Day of Summer Fun

Let’s start the summer with appreciating each day’s simple glories. This is the first day after Memorial Day weekend. The weekend that starts the summer so let’s start the summer enjoying life.

This weekend the peonies in my backyard popped open. I have been watching the buds but as a watched pot never boils the buds never opened. Then I stepped out in the backyard and they were rejoicing in the sun. These plants were handed down to me from my parents from my grandmothers garden. She loved these flowers and their scent. Every Sunday when I left to come home from Sunday dinner she would cut me a bouquet and wrap the stems in a wet rag and put it in a mason jar for the ride home. At home I would always put the bouquet in a Waterford crystal vase that I had received from an old friend. Oh how I loved those bouquets. (This year’s flower in my bathroom.)

My grandmother passed away years ago and I asked for a few pieces of her peonies. These plants have moved 4 times with me in the past years and never really bloomed more than one or two flowers. They have been in their newest home three years are putting on a show. And I am enjoying them and the memories they bring to me. (Grandma’s peonies in my garden.)

A few tips on growing peonies

• Do not plant them too deep – about one knuckle deep from the top of the roots to the top of the soil.
• They like the sun and not to be moved too often.
• Stake them with a grow-thru-grid or make your own with bamboo stakes and twine in the early spring. This helps to keep the blooms up and off the ground.
• Be sure after they bloom to water them regularly drought after blooming brings fewer blooms next year.

Peonies come in different colors and types. (Another peony – a gift from a dear friend)

The ones I am talking about are herbaceous peonies. They are easy to find at garden centers. Or if you are lucky a friend will share either blooms or plants and let the memories begin.