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Early Summer Flowers

In early June my tree peony bloomed, producing two amazing blossoms, one 9 inches across, the second slightly smaller. Each year this small woody shrub (Paeonia suffruticosa), the cousin of our regular herbaceous peonies, produces 1-4 blossoms for me. Each is fragrant, huge, and ephemeral - the blossoms only last a couple of days, and a thunder shower can send petals to the ground on day one. Given the short life span of the blossoms, I usually pick them as soon as they open, or even before.

Tree peonies are expensive, and often take 2-4 years to settle in before they bloom. Although they are hardy to Zone 4 (able to withstand temperature of minus 30 degrees), they do better in Zone 5, where they get bigger and bloom better, I'm told. They do best in full sun or partial shade, and like deep, fertile, well-drained soil.

If planting a tree peony, follow the same procedure you would for a standard peony: dig a hole 24" deep and wide, and refill it with a 50-50 mix of good garden soil and compost (or aged manure), and minerals. Before refilling the hole, mix the soil, compost and minerals in a wheelbarrow. I use a cup of a bagged organic fertilizer such as Pro-Gro, a cup of rock phosphate (good for promoting roots and blossoms), and a cup of green sand (for the potassium needed to produce good strong cell walls that help survive cold and drought). I also add enough limestone to sweeten the soil to about neutral - about half a cup for my soil.

Refill the hole, packing down the soil mix so that it doesn't settle later, then plant. It's important not to plant a peony deeper than it is in its pot, particularly the standard herbaceous peonies. If you cover the growing buds, or eyes, with more than an inch of soil, your plant will not do well, and may fail to bloom.

Many regular hybrid peonies flop. They grow flowers that are so big and heavy that they can't hold their heads up, especially when wet. If you haven't surrounded them with wire cages or made string-and-bamboo supports, they collapse when it rains. But there is another solution: buy 'single' peonies. Instead of a blossom with many layers of petals (called doubles), singles have just a single ring of petals - so they are much lighter, and less prone to flop. Scarlet O'Hara and Flame are nice single reds. I recommend buying peonies when in bloom so you can see and sniff them - not all are fragrant.

Another early summer bloomer I love is columbine (Aquilegia spp). Columbine comes in a range of colors, from light pink and white to a purple so deep it's almost black. The blossoms - star shaped in cross section and reminiscent of a court jester's cap - are arranged at the tips of stems 18-36 inches tall. They make terrific cut flowers. Best of all, they produce lots of seeds and show up everywhere in our garden. Each plant is delicate, so they fit themselves in and around other things without being pests. They are hardy to Zone 3, and will grow in full sun to moderate shade.

If you have a sunny wet spot that needs a burst of color in early summer, plant a globeflower (Trollius europaeus). Related to wild buttercups, these are wonderful. They have intense yellow, globe-shaped flowers just an inch or two across that seem to float above the dark green, highly incised leaves. But don't bother planting them unless you have a spot that is consistently moist all summer. They will tolerate some shade, but need soil rich in organic matter. Hardy to Zone 3.

Another plant worth looking for is the white form of Jacob's ladder (Polemonium caeruleum var. album). Jacob's ladder is normally blue, but I like the white form better. The blossoms stand out at dusk, and in my garden the white form seems to hold its blossoms longer than the blue ones planted next to it. It blossoms in clusters at the tip of the stiff 24-inch stems that have small, almost fern-like foliage. Each blossom is an open cup about half an inch across. It will grow in part shade or full sun. Hardy to Zone 3.

If you cut flowers to arrange in a vase, follow the 5-second rule: from the time you re-cut them to the time they go in the vase, no more than 5-seconds should elapse. Cut flowers will last longer if you change the water every 2 days and re-cut the stems. In an old milk jug mix up a gallon of "flower power" water by adding a tablespoon of sugar and a quarter of a teaspoon of bleach, and use that to fill your vases.

If the rain flattens your flowers, cut them and fill vases. You'll see them more inside, and they'll cheer you up on a rainy day. It works for me, anyhow.

Henry Homeyer is the VT/NH associate editor of People, Places and Plants magazine. His website is www.gardening-guy.com. He may be contacted at gardening.guy@valley.net, or P.O. Box 364, Cornish Flat, NH 03746.