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The First Peony - 'Shima-Nishiki'

The Tree Peony 'Shima-Nishiki' is the first to bloom. The name means "fire flame" in Japanese, an apt title to describe the red blooms striped with white. Occasionally, there are solid red blooms. Every year this peony gets better and seemingly overnight, the puny-looking bare branches are suddenly fleshed out with a tremendous profusion of leaves. The bush is dense, forming a 4 ft. mound. Our plant resides at the top of one of the terrace beds in back where it gets some morning sun and dappled sun (mostly shade) for the remainder of the day.  We have many peonies in the garden and they all came from Adelman Peony Gardens in Salem, Oregon. It is worth a drive just to see their beautiful display garden in May. Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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My Favorite Plant This Week - Duetzia 'Magician'



It seems a bit ridiculous to proclaim a favorite plant of the week when truthfully I have many favorites and would be hard pressed to choose just one. But it sounds good on a blog post, doesn't it?

Deutzia 'Magician' (sometimes spelled as 'Magicien') is new to me and was planted two years ago. It didn't bloom very much last year but my word, it was stunning this year. Standing about 4 feet tall with long, arching canes, it was smothered with deep pink blooms that are edged in white. The floral extravaganza is a bit brief (about 2 weeks) but it is memorable.

Most descriptions list it as about 8 feet tall when mature but the one I've seen at Joy Creek Nursery is the size of a small tree and easily 10 feet if not more. Pruning should be done after blooming.


Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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Comments

  1. Lisa at GreenbowJune 7, 2020 at 2:10 PM

    This shrub has a lot going for it. Color is the best. Light green leaves and those blooms!

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  2. chavlinessJune 7, 2020 at 6:55 PM

    Stunning blooms. I wish I had the room for this shrub. I have a neighbor that cuts it down to the ground every year...

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  3. UnknownJune 9, 2020 at 8:55 AM

    I thought that looks like my deutzia "Pink-A-Boo" only to find out it's the same plant - your name is more dignified.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hoover BooJune 9, 2020 at 2:51 PM

    Beautiful photo and flowers--not a genus grown around here. Enjoyed seeing it.

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