Friday, February 28, 2014

Canadian Peony Presidents Message

By David Maltby

We certainly are in a grip of a cold, snowy, wet and freezing winter at this time. Hopefully, the peonies will come through okay.  But by the time you receive this newsletter, there will be a few short weeks until spring starts to makes its way across the country. The days are getting longer even now.  Another year has concluded and I have to thank the people who do most of the work in our society including, Blaine Marchand, our newsletter editor, Marvin Belfour, our financial secretary, Reiner Jakubowski, for keeping track of our membership and providing sage advice, Margaret Sequeira, for organizing and coordinating the root sale and the CPS Blog, Bill Wegman, for organizing and packaging the seed exchange each year, Lana Taylor-Mills who maintains our website, and all the members who contribute to the newsletter, to the annual shows, and to the website Our director’s position for Quebec is vacant at this time. If there is any member who would wish to take on that responsibility, please make yourself known or if any members would like to
put forward someone else’s name that would be most welcome.  I am looking forward to attending
our show and Annual General Meeting in Winnipeg at the Assiniboine Park Conservatory this June. Assiniboine Park has many attractions and is well worth the visit. Their perennial gardens are fantastic. In fact, the peony collection at the Park has a close link with the CPS.  Mary Ann Robinson and June Brett, who was originally from Winnipeg, donated peonies from their private collection to honour June’s family connection to the city. Their donation was increased by donations from Joe and Hazel Cook, Lindsay D’Aoust, Judi and Michael Denny, Brian Porter and Mary Pratte. The garden was most welcoming of this
gift and the intent was to hold the CPS show in Winnipeg this year.  Each year, the Assiniboine Park
Conservatory chooses a theme or event to celebrate Canadian Gardening Day. It is on June 13 this year and they have chosen the CPS show and peonies as the event to mark it. There will be extra media attention for peonies and our show, which will be in the foyer of the Conservatory and will spill out into the floral display area. Gerald Dieleman, the Director of Horticulture, at the Assiniboine Park Conservancy, is fully committed to ensuring our show is a well-attended success.  Hopefully, many members from across Canada will attend. We have only a few members in Manitoba but this will be an opportunity to expand our Society’s membership and exposure in the province, and for CPS members to explore the city and nearby countryside
and enjoy the many gardens. Winnipeg is a beautiful city.
Hope to see you there.

American Peony Society Report

By Dana Tretheway, President
www.americanpeonysociety.org

Spring is approaching and we are most deserving of milder weather. This winter was bitterly cold and snowy for many of us. With the Polar Vortex visiting in January, many parts of the United States saw record-breaking cold temperatures and snowfall.  Hopefully, a warming trend will continue and we will all enjoy a productive peony blooming season.  In December, the Hollingsworth and Tretheway families along with many members of the American Peony Society were saddened by the lost of Lavon Hollingsworth. Mom, as I liked to call her, had become a great fan of peonies and played an important roll in the development of Hollingsworth peonies. Of all the things she did in life, such as travel and a nursing career, she so enjoyed spending the last twenty years living and working on a farm and having a wonderful and caring spouse, Don Hollingsworth.  The APS Convention in Ohio is approaching quickly.
Mike Miller and Claudia Schroer have been working hard making arrangements to ensure we have a successful and enjoyable convention. Don Smith of Newton, MA will be presenting two seminars on hybrid peonies, one of which he presented at the International Peony Forum in Luoyang, China April 2013.
I am again soliciting nominations for the Gold Medal peony to be selected at the convention.
Feel free to submit your nominations to ampeonysociety@att.net and please include a statement as to why you believe your nomination should be the Gold Medal recipient for 2014. There are currently three
slated nominations: Brother Chuck, Cora Stubbs and Eliza Lundy (2013 Runner-up).
Wishing everyone a great growing season. Please post photos of your peony gems at the American Peony
Society Facebook page and feel free to submit photos to Adriana Feng for posting on the APS website gallery.
Hope to see some you at Kingwood Center, Mansfield, Ohio, June 6-8th!

Thursday, February 27, 2014

A Star is Born

                                       
At home. I will recall its history: January 4th 2007 peony seeds placed in the frozen earth under snow; May 2008 first growth rises through the earth; 2009, 2010, 2011 increased growth of young seedlings; 2012, the first white flower, a fragrant bomb, graces a slender stem; I move the plant close to the entry of the house to bask in its scent; Summer 2013 a dozen winter-white flowers reveal its true beauty.
Although not yet registered with the American Peony Society, its name is easy -Snow-White!


Michel St-Pierre is an enthusiastic seedling 
grower in La Malbaie, Québec. He recently wrote
about his passion for peonies in the February
2013 (vol. 16/number 1) newsletter.


 By Michel St-Pierre

À la racine du sujet



Par Marilyn HS Light
Cet article raconte comment une attrayante pivoine a été donnée, enfin, c’est ce que je pensais, pour me revenir trois ans plus tard et comment ceci m’amena à faire une recherche sur les racines de pivoines.
J’avais planté un sachet de graines de pivoines hybrides Maurice Ménard. Ces plants herbacés fleurirent pour la première fois en 2009. Un d’entre eux était particulièrement attrayant présentant, très tôt, de larges fleurs simples saumon autoportantes. Comme mon jardin n’est pas grand, je décidai de donner le plant robuste à un compagnon jardinier qui avait plus d’espace. Le plant était encore jeune de sorte que je ne m’attendais à aucun problème jusqu’au moment où je commençai à creuser: plusieurs racines épaisses d’un mètre de long étaient étalées dans toutes les directions. Si je voulais déplacer ce plant, il fallait en rompre quelques-unes. Avec beaucoup de réticence, je coupai des racines importantes à environ 30 à 40 cm de la couronne et, avec difficulté, soulevai la motte de racines pour la placer dans un contenant. Mon voisin avait été averti qu’il aurait besoin de préparer un espace en conséquence. Maintenant, j’avais un grand espace pour planter d’autres choses. Je remplis le trou, plantai des tomates cerises en 2011 et des haricots à rames en 2012.
Cette année-là, je remarquai de fortes pousses feuillues de pivoines émergeant de la périphérie du trou. Comme je pensais que ce devait être des semences tardives, je pris soin de ne pas les endommager. En 2013, chaque tige fleurit. C’est alors que je découvris que ce que je croyais avoir donné était de retour en quintuple. Chaque tête démontrait qu’elle avait poussé à partir de bourgeons adventifs qui s’étaient formés sur les racines coupées du plant original. Cinq tiges identiques, mais séparées indiquaient que cette pivoine n’avait aucune intention de quitter mon jardin à moins que les restants de la plante ne soient enlevés jusqu’à la dernière racine.
Si l’on réfléchit au comportement de cette pivoine, on pourrait déduire que les racines ne sont pas simplement la portion souterraine, mais qu’elles sont aussi créées pour soutenir les plantes qui traversent une période difficile. Elles pourraient même aider à assurer la survie des espèces si une grande partie de la masse de la plante était détruite par un désastre naturel. À ce que je sache, la formation d’un bourgeon adventif ne semble pas un trait universel, mais les pivoines qui ont cette capacité de survivre pourraient potentiellement se déplacer vers un habitat plus adéquat, peut-être mieux arrosé ou plus lumineux.
La formation de racines est importante pour la survie des pivoines autant dans la nature que dans un jardin. Les pivoines herbacées et les pivoines arbustives, qu’elles aient germé de graines, de plants ou de plantes adultes, dépendent toutes de leurs racines pour absorber l’eau et les éléments nutritifs minéraux. L’intégrité des racines du premier plant est essentielle pour le futur développement de la première pousse.  Le succès de cette première petite pousse feuillue à se développer et à faire de la photosynthèse est critique pour la survie du plant au cours de la prochaine saison de croissance.  Même les petites feuilles peuvent produire une quantité surprenante de produits photosynthétiques – sucres convertis en amidon entreposé dans une racine qui ressemble à une carotte et qui grossit rapidement. Sans réserve adéquate d’amidon, les bourgeons qui ont passé l’hiver sous terre manqueront d’énergie pour se développer et former une nouvelle pousse feuillue la saison suivante.
Examinons le procédé par lequel l’amidon se forme et est emmagasiné. La photosynthèse nécessite un feuillage en santé. De là, les sucres sont transportés aux racines où l’amidon s’accumule. Le processus prend du temps, s’achevant lorsque le gel commence à endommager le feuillage. C’est l’une des raisons pour lesquelles nous devrions attendre tard à l’automne avant de diviser et de déplacer une plante. Lorsqu’on divise une pivoine, nous devrions nous assurer d’avoir une bonne quantité de racines d’entreposage avec les bourgeons désirés. Avoir une division avec cinq bourgeons ou plus, mais sans quantité adéquate de racines remplies d’amidon, pourrait retarder la régénération d’une ou plusieurs saisons.
Finalement, en examinant les plants, vous remarquerez sur les illustrations comment différentes espèces produisent des racines qui emmagasinent de l’amidon à différentes étapes de la croissance. Le plant de la pivoine arbustive est typique: l’amidon est déposé dans une tige renflée sous la surface du sol. Dans la troisième année, il se forme également plus de racines d’entreposage typiques. La Paeonia tenuifolia a de délicates petites feuilles dans ses premières années et est plutôt lente à produire des organes d’entreposage. Sur l’illustration, on peut voir comment  les pousses de bourgeons de l’année prochaine se développent déjà, peut-être en acquérant de l’énergie du produit photosynthétique formé par les feuilles existantes. Les bourgeons fragiles et le réseau de petites racines m’indiquent que ces plants ne devraient pas être dérangés pour au moins une autre saison de croissance. Je trouve que les pots de fibres de noix de coco (coir) sont parfaits pour protéger ce genre de plants pendant les premières années où ils sont vulnérables.
Les plants de P. mlokosewitschii et de P. peregrina forment rapidement des racines d’entreposage. Les plants de deux ans ont déjà deux racines de ce type. Un plant de quatre ans qui fleurissait pour la première fois avait de nombreuses racines lorsqu’il a été déterré cet automne et il commençait aussi à produire des racines d’entreposages plus longues. J’ai appris ma leçon : il est temps de les déplacer, eux!
Marilyn Light jardine à Gatineau, Québec, où elle se plaît à faire pousser des plantes à partir de semences. Son plaisir consiste à observer la première floraison, en humer le parfum et à avoir plus tard des semences à partager lors d’échanges.

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

At the Root of the Matter



By Marilyn HS Light

This article begins with my account of how a desirable peony was given away, or so I thought, only to return just three years later, and how this led me into an investigation of peony roots.

I had planted a packet of Maurice Menard hybrid peony seeds. Those herbaceous seedlings all bloomed for the first time in 2009. One was particularly handsome having very early, self-supporting, large single salmon pink blooms. My garden is not large so I decided to give the robust plant to a fellow gardener who had space. It was still a young plant so I did not anticipate a problem until I began digging: many thick metre-long roots radiated outward in all directions. I would have to break some if I was ever going to move this plant anywhere. I reluctantly severed key roots about 30-40 cm from the crown and, with some difficulty, levered the root ball onto a carrier. My neighbor was warned that he would need to prepare accordingly but I now had a large space for something else. I filled the hole, planting cherry tomatoes in 2011 and then pole beans in 2012.

That year, I noticed some strong leafy peony shoots emerging in from the periphery of the hole. I thought that these might be tardy seedlings so was careful not to damage them. In 2013, each stem bloomed, which is when I discovered that what I thought I had given away had returned five-fold. Each crown showed that it had arisen from adventitious buds that had formed on severed roots of the original plant. Five identical but separate blooming stems demonstrated that this peony did not intend to leave my garden unless every last root remnant was removed. 


If we consider the behaviour of this peony, we may deduce that roots are not merely the below ground portion but designed to carry plants through hard times, and might even help ensure species survival if a large part of the plant mass is lost to natural disaster. As far as I am aware, adventitious bud formation does not seem to be a universal trait but peonies having this survival capacity could potentially move to a more suitable, perhaps better drained or brightly lit habitat. 


 


Root formation is important to peony survival both in nature and in the garden. Herbaceous and woody (tree) peonies, whether germinating seeds, seedlings, or adult plants, all depend upon their roots to absorb water and mineral nutrients. The integrity of the first seedling root is essential to the later development of the first shoot. The success of that first small leafy shoot to expand and photosynthesize is critical to seedling survival into the next growing season. Even small leaves can produce a surprising amount of photosynthetic product – sugars that are converted to starch, which is deposited in a rapidly swelling, carrot-like storage root. Without adequate starch reserves, over-wintering buds will lack energy to expand to form a new leafy shoot the following season. 



Consider the process by which starch is formed and stored. Healthy foliage is needed for photosynthesis. Sugars are thence transported to roots where starch is accumulated. The process takes time, ending as frost first nips the foliage. This is one reason why we should wait until late autumn before dividing or moving a plant. We should pay close attention to having a good amount of storage roots with the desirable ‘eyes’ whenever dividing a plant. Having a division with five or more ‘eyes’ but inadequate quantity of starch-filled roots could set recovery back by one or more seasons.

Lastly, considering seedlings, you will note from the images how different species produce starch-storage roots at different developmental stages. The tree peony seedling is typical: starch is deposited in a swollen stem below the soil surface. By the 3rd year, more typical storage roots form as well. Paeonia tenuifolia has small delicate leaflets in its first years and is quite slow at producing storage organs. In the image, we can see how next year’s shoot buds are already expanding, perhaps getting a jump-start by using photosynthetic product formed by the present leaves. Fragile buds and small root system indicates to me that these seedlings should not be disturbed for at least one more growing season. I find that coir pots are perfect to shelter such seedlings during the vulnerable first years.

Seedlings of P. mlokosewitschii and  P. peregrina quickly form storage roots. Second year seedlings already have a couple of such roots. One four-year seedling blooming for the first time had copious roots when dug this autumn and was also beginning to produce longer storage roots. I have learned my lesson: it is time to move these!

Marilyn Light gardens in Gatineau, Québec, where she enjoys raising many plants from seed. The joy is in seeing the first bloom, having fragrance, and later seeds to share through the exchange.


Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Peony Root Essentials / L’essentiel du savoir en matière de racine de pivoine


By Marilyn Light

·         Without good roots, there is no peony or desired blooms.
·         The starch storage capacity of peony roots must be fostered from the
earliest stages.
·         Adequate root reserves must be transferred with roots when making divisions.
·         The best planting situation is in friable, deeply dug soil providing
excellent drainage away from the crown.
·         A bright location and space between plants promotes health.
·         Robust plants could have a wide rooting zone to support future growth
and this could present problems moving/dividing plants later on.
·         Seedlings should show such propensity by their 4th year.
·         Less vigorous peonies may have compact root systems that should be
moved in their entirety when transplanting.



 ************************************

par Marilyn H.S. Light

·         Sans bonnes racines, vous n’obtiendrez ni la pivoine ni les fleurs que vous souhaitez.
·         La capacité de stockage d'amidon des racines de pivoine doit être stimulée très tôt.
·         Lorsqu’on divise les racines, il faut faire attention à garder des racines qui ont de bonnes réserves.
·         La meilleure situation de plantation est dans un sol friable et profondément creusé fournissant un excellent drainage loin de la couronne.
·         Un endroit et un espace lumineux entre les plants favorise la santé.
·         Les plants robustes pourraient avoir une zone étendue d’enracinement  pour supporter leur future croissance et ceci pourrait présenter des défis lors de la division ou le déplacement futur des plants.  Les plants devraient montrer de telles dispositions dans leur 4ème année.
·         Les pivoines moins vigoureuses peuvent avoir des systèmes compacts de racine qui devraient être déplacés dans leur intégralité lors de la transplantation.

 

Monday, February 24, 2014

voici une de mes dernières présentation en tant que directeur de la SCP les 3 autres seront en mars

ce fût une très belle expérience de faire des amis et amateurs de pivoines, je vais continuer à faire des ateliers dans les écoles et sociétés  horticoles  (ateliers de semis et mode de culture)
 
Martinus
pour votre information , il me reste 4 ateliers avec des engagements de l'an passé avant de finir

martinus
présentation historique de la pivoine
les 4 derniers festivals
atelier sur les semis
et un atelier sur les fleurs coupées
en p/j  photo de l'atelier de SAINT CALIXTE


Open Gardens 2014



All members of the Canadian Peony Society are encouraged to open their gardens to show off the peonies during the flowering season. Last year, we had members from across the country with Open Gardens. Feedback indicates that those members who invited their local garden club in and/or had a few special open days that they publicized locally were more successful in drawing and welcoming guests. Ideally, it is an opportune time to invite local gardeners to view our special peony collections and to promote the CPS and the peony.
So, in 2014, we will again offer the Open Garden Program and will publish the dates and locations of the gardens in the newsletter. As they say, “Old friends are silver, but new ones are gold”. I encourage anyone who has not opened their garden in the past to consider participating this year.
Please contact me at hplove8@telus.net with any questions about the program and to have your garden listed.