I've always bought peonies for their looks, not fragrance, just recently started paying attention to whether they were smelled good. A couple of my newer ones say they're fragrant, I'll pay more attention next bloom season. I think you got Mother's Choice this year, right? That one definitely smells good! Are you looking to compile your list for next fall or are you ordering more, kousa?

Hi Liz! I would like to add some peonies with nice pleasing fragrance to a garden bed in memory of my mother who passed away this year. I read on some peonies website that these suppose to have a lot of fragrance but I do not know if their fragrance is nice. I once fell in love with Pink Hawaiian Coral flower and then I smelled it and the scent was so bad that I could not bring myself to buy it.

Really, doesn't anyone out there grow the above peonies? Please share your experience if you do. Many thanks, Karen

I'm sorry, Kousa. Of the above listed, I have Myrtle Gentry, but I only got it this year. If it blooms next year, I can tell you :/

Nope. Don't have any of those, but I did have to add that I never smelled a tree peony that I liked lol.
I have a friend who thought they smelled like school paste, but when I told him my Kamatanishiki smelled like mayonnaise, he said "that's it! THAT's what they smell like!"
hahahahaha

lol Jackie
Well, now I know what smell to expect of my trees! Better mayo than the plant I had at my previous place, a peony that smelled like rot and perfume.

I got Hermoine this year, I'll certainly pass it on if the blooms smell nice. The only one that jumped to mind was the Mother's Choice from the ones I have. To me, most of the peonies I have smell kinda' like lilies, almost cloying, not really a good smell.

Thanks, everyone. I guess they are not the most popular varieties. Liz, I can't wait to see a bloom on Mother's Choice. It was so beautiful.when I saw it at a Peony's grower garden. At that time, I did not have a lot of time so I rushed through everything and I could not recall the scent on Mother's Choice.

It's a nice scent, definitely not the funky lily smell at all. Think you'll like it!

Liz, I know what you mean about the funky lily smell. I think that was how Duchess de Nemour smelled. Though that scent might appeal to other, it was awful to me, Finally gave in and ordered Philip Revoir and Hermione from Old House Garden Bulbs. I will probably order the other two fragrant next year from Charmarron Gardens. I was really impressed with the scent of Henry Bockstoce this spring. I hope to find more that smell like it. I can't wait for Mother's Choice as well as other fragrant peonies that I have to bloom.

Oooooohhhh, I got Henry Bockstoce and Hermione this year, hope I get blooms next spring! I'll have to look at Philip Revoir, haven't heard of that one. I'll remember to post any I have that smells pretty for you to grow your list! You already have Eden's Perfume, Edulis Superba is supposed to smell really nice, too.

Myrtle Gentry is one of the most wonderfully fragrant (very pleasing) peonies; next to White Cap, (which actually smells like a pleasing rose fragrance).

Thank you, fallgardener. I'm very happy to hear that about Myrtle Gentry. Kousa, I will look into Henry Bockstoce. That's one of those often offered in nurseries here. I've been afraid of buying reds since the two I have smelled ranged from nasty to barely tolerable, but I would like a couple in my garden eventually.

It is nice to hear from an actual grower. Thank you for sharing your experience. Next spring if some of my fragrant peonies bloom, I have to note their fragrance and whether they smell nice or not.