Zones can be misleading. I grow lots of peonies here and if zones were all we needed you could do well with them. Call you local county extension service and ask the average number of cooling hours for where you live. Generally anything over 400 hours and your peonies will do well if you are careful to plant them high in the soil so the buds for next years stems are exposed to air temperatures and not insulated by the soil. Your peonies should bloom consistently ONCE ESTABLISHED which can take up to three years. If you dig compost into your soil before planting and regularly top dress seasonally with compost your soil should not be a problem. Al

Thanks, Al, for responding!

My peony roots should be coming in a few weeks. The recommended time to plant peonies is Fall, so should I plant my shipment of peony roots now or save them for Fall planting?

Thanks for the tips....I will also call my extension office today too.

Happy Spring to all!

Audrey

If your peonies are shipped bare root divisions, I would pot them up and plant them in the fall. If you are getting peonies rooted in pots from four inch pots to one gallon size I would plant them in the garden when received. Your summer sun may be a little strong for plants just out of a greenhouse, and I would provide some shade from midday sun. Al

I grown a few in Northern California too. I'm near the CA Central Valley so I have 100 degree days in the summer. They really need afternoon shade in that heat. The best recommendation I got was to plant early blooming ones. That way when they bloom our real heat hasn't hit yet. So far, it works for me. I bought both of mine potted so they weren't very young. Some bloom 1st year, good bloom last year in their second year. They're just now putting their noses out of the ground for this year. I'm thinking of adding a third. My best one is Bowl of Beauty.

Audrey

I am in Zone 8b in alkaline soil in central CA. I just posted a long message on the thread "peonies for the South "

I totally agree the comment posted by rosecorgis.
My personal favorite is Coral Charm.

Good luck!

here is something that I fished up about lilacs. I planted a persian lilac but I did not do to well with it 30 yrs ago during my first years as a Texas gardener. But as I said, I am not a very attentive in august kind of gall. I seem to get deadlines in the summer and my garden goes to h_ll in a blink of an eye. I might have taken a trip in August or something. Others have done all right by it

Here is a link that might be useful: Best Lilac for Central Texas.

MrsR1969- I live in Fort Worth and just bought a peony from Archie's. If I pot it, what do I do with it in the winter?

Wimberley, Texas May 2015

It took 10 years for my Peony to produce 2 buds that would open. This past March and April gave central Texas cool nights which I believe the buds needed for a successful blossom.

The Peony is planted in a raised bed under Oaks and Cedars. The lighting is shaded through the year. This plant has only reached the height of 2 feet and 2' width. It may be another 10 years before she blossoms again but it was certainly worth the wait. No special care except for my home made mulch added in early March. Soft pink in color with a matching soft sweet aroma!

I have heard of people covering their dormant peony plants with ice, several times daily, in order to provide the necessary chilling. Might be worth looking into, but it seems like a lot of work to me.

The Peony Blossoms I photographed are in Zone 8 in Wimberley Tx., southwest of Austin, Tx.

I have had buds over the past 10 years but non have bloomed until this cool, wet spring. My nurseryman told me about the ice process but I never tried it. I am convinced the buds need cool nights and rain water to fully blossom. Central Texas has been in a drought for many years and we have had a very cool, not cold, spring. Unfortunately, I can not control the weather so I may just have to wait another 10 years for the same perfect conditions we had this year.

Good luck with yours.

Why not try tree peonies? which are said to be o.k. for Texas.

Tree Peonies? Never heard of it. Have you had experience with them and will they grow and bloom in Central Texas, Wimberley area 78676? Does anyone have a photo of their tree Peony? Would enjoy seeing! Thanks

Tree Peonies are more tolerable to heat ( don't need so many chilling hours in winter as herbaceous peonies )

The following are for information of growing peonies in Zone 8 and 9

https://crickethillgarden.wordpress.com/2013/01/17/growing-peonies-in-usda-zones-8-and-9/

Hello... I have read all of the post regarding peonies. I also live in Fort Worth and purchased potted peonies ( Monrovia Madame Emile Debatene Double Peonies) from Calloways Nursery in early May. The gardener felt like I could plant them in large urns. I have done that... with the root system planted high in the soil. I'm experiencing the leaves slowly turning lighter green/ yellowish, dropping underneath and then turning brown. I shade them from direct sun during the day and put them out in the evening sun. I water them directly into the roots every two or the days... can someone advise?

How big are the urns? Find a spot that the urns are in shade and leave them there. They need to become acclimated to the spot. If your surface is below the edge of the urn there may be a problem with molds and fungi since the crown can not receive any air current. Since you state you are moving them daily it sounds like they are in too small of a pot. Perhaps it would be better to just go ahead and plant in the ground. At this point it sounds like they are either going dormant or dying. Steve who used to be on here but dropped out after moving to I think Indiana had gorgeous peonies in the ground in the Forth Worth area.

Akapw1138, the peony that they sold you is supposed to bloom late mid season, you might want to try one that is supposed to bloom early since those are supposed to be more reliable in the south. Once successful with that one I'd start branching out to see what works for you in your specific micro-climate and what doesn't as far as peonies are concerned. There are a couple of good resources, http://www.paeo.de/name/index.html is good if you already have a name and want to do research and http://www.peonies.org/ident.html has many less varieties listed but you can search by bloom type, color and time.

Do you have any information on peonies grown in South Texas? Dallas info is not helpful, different climate.

HU South Texas still covers a lot of area be a little more specific as to the area such as county or town. Nearer to the Gulf is different than South Texas Plains.

San Antonio. If South Texas covers "a lot of ground", then surely the distance between Dallas and San Antonio is very significant.

Well HU if you only go by gardening zone San Antonio is currently listed as 8b which is just a little different than the 8a where the Oregon peony growers are located. Your soil may be too alkaline for them to thrive. You can only try. I would suggest early singles, Japanese, and semidoubles because of the early warmth. Peonies grow in many climates but are not fond off wet feet.

HU I wrote something then deleted it. When you learn more about peonies perhaps you will change your mind about knowledge.

I live in Texarkana and grow peonies herbaceous Itoh and tree peonies with good results.

If you are talking Austin south I would suggest tree or some types of Ithos they seem less troubled by heat. plant in and area that shelters the afternoon sun and be mindful of wind.

High hot drying winds and peonies dont mix well. In dry conditons expect to water use plant wilt as a guide be careful not to overwater to avoid rot. be sure to have rich humus laden soil and mulch up to about 1 to 2 inches from the crown. I plant in fall after the wose part of the heat is not a worry.. If you got good stock expect blooms the following spring. some of the tree peonies are very heat resistant I really suggest one called ”White Crane” if my memory is good on that LOL Good Luck! here is a link as for cold try ceing in the winter pick a good freeze and spreadice and let it sit overnight a time or two. Ive used that and it helps. I have many blooms each spring. https://www.treepeony.com/blogs/peonies/growing-peonies-in-usda-zones-8-and-9 BTW my memory wasent good that tree peony I was talking about is ”Snow Lotus” not White Crane. You will see a photo in the link I provided. BTW some folks tend to be arrogant and abusive most of the time in my experience they are of little help. I do wish you the best of luck and hope your springs will be full of bloom! Peace out