Golden Acre Home & Garden Centre's Plant Library

Other Names:  Itoh Peony

Group/Class:  Itoh Hybrids

Description:

Huge semi-double creamy blooms flushed with salmon-peach are held on strong stems above luxurious finely cut foliage; a profusion of blooms in late spring to early summer; perfect for cutting, or the perennial border

Ornamental Features

Singing in the Rain Peony features bold lightly-scented peach flowers with salmon overtones and gold eyes at the ends of the stems from late spring to early summer. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its attractive lobed compound leaves remain dark green in colour throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Singing in the Rain Peony is an herbaceous perennial with a mounded form. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and should be cut back in late fall in preparation for winter. It is a good choice for attracting bees and butterflies to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. Gardeners should be aware of the following characteristic(s) that may warrant special consideration;

• Disease

Singing in the Rain Peony is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Singing in the Rain Peony will grow to be about 4 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 4 feet. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 4 feet apart. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 20 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. To help this plant achive its best flowering performance, periodically apply a flower-boosting fertilizer from early spring through into the active growing season. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution, and will benefit from being planted in a relatively sheltered location. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.