I spotted tiny red shoots from some seedling paeonia...but have lost the labels. I recall sowing p.veitchii and p.mascula 3 years ago...but time will tell. Undecided whether to risk another summer in pots or go for an early transplant.

The corals and reds that I've purchased from GW seem to be correctly ID'ed but have had issues with what should be double pinks, several have been single pinks and one was a really nice single yellow, still trying to figure out what it is. They grow well here in CO--not all from different sellers do. If you decide to order from them make sure you mark the variety as they will give a credit for any incorrectly labeled ones but they don't do refunds. Peonies planted in the spring don't typically grow very much that first season and will require more care than those planted in the fall.

In fall 2017 I planted ten Kansas from GHW (got 10 for $90 with free shipping thanks to a discount code supplied by Liz) as a mass planting. All bloomed in spring '18 and they all matched. I'll use GHW for other large groupings in the future.

The Sword Dance I just ordered will spend this season potted because I don't have a planting site ready for it - I expect to plant peonies in fall. The only spring peonies I have seen in the past are the boxed roots at Home Depot.

Glad it worked out well for you, Cecily! Their prices, quality of roots and the fact that they were a huge Saunder's peony grower in the past keep me going back to them, year after year! Always hoping to find an elusive Saunders variety....

I actually have 6 peonies right now in grow bags in my garage--Adelman's late fall sale, couldn't resist but the gardens were already covered in ice by the time they made it to me and it's too cold and dry here for them to make it outside in the winter here in CO. I'll transition these out of the garage as the temps come up in the spring to acclimatize and will probably plant them out as soon as the ground thaws.

Have you dealt with keeping potted peonies alive before? It's not difficult but you treat them differently than those planted in the ground--you'll want a lot more shade. The roots get MUCH hotter in a pot and it's hard to keep them watered correctly if you put them out where you'd normally plant peonies. I have a huge pine tree in my front yard butting up to one of my planting areas, I normally put my potted peonies there so I can keep an eye on them. Peonies don't like excessive moisture and keeping them in a shady area allows me to just water once or twice a week, letting the top inch or so of the soil dry out between waterings. The location they're in gives them only an hour or two of direct sun fairly early in the morning and is pretty much full shade later in the day so the roots don't overheat.

Campanula, peonies that are in pots aren't much more fussy than any other perennial when they're planted out in the spring. If you decide to plant them in your garden early spring just give them more shade for several weeks--I have some stackable chairs that I place over mine, and water them more consistently than you'd water those planted bare root in the fall. Especially important for smaller seedlings since they don't have as much root mass to live off of.

Hope your seedlings make it through to flowering and that you post some pics of them here! I only have a few species peonies but love the unique look of them, would love to see the ones you're growing!

cecily, just wanted to le you know that if you did have a planting site ready and waiting, you can certainly plant peonies in spring! Cautions you read about that are just garden myths that have no basis in reality. Here, started peony plants, often in bud and bloom, are sold by the dozens at area nurseries (and box stores) in midspring, ready to pop in the ground. In fact, that is the only time of year one finds them available (sold out by early summer) unless it is the bare roots sold in plastic bags or one frequents a few local peony specialty nurseries.

They do just as well as any fall planted ones!!

One thing about the nursery planted pots is that some were not planted at the right depth in the pot but merely put in the pot and the pot filled with mix. Some peonies will climb their roots toward the surface while others will just die if planted at the wrong depth. My suggestion is always to remove the mix but mix it into the new soil when planting. Many years ago I rescued a peony from an area that a church had asked members to fill in. I originally thought the plant was near the surface. When I returned with a shovel it was probably 15-18 inches below the surface. The root showed several layers of growth based on the stems. I have no idea how long it had been there.