Swenson Gardens

PEONY FIELD DAYS UPDATE FOR JUNE 9, 2017

Field 1-1

My, my what a difference in field color of the peonies that were in bloom a week ago! Thankfully the thunderstorms missed us late yesterday but the extreme heat has launched our bloom time full speed ahead. For those of you who attended last week we were in the early and early to mid bloom time. We are now at the mid to late and some late bloom time. My guess is that some of the lates will start showing in the afternoon. The intersectional hybrid (ITOH) peonies are really showing their spectacular colors and yes Chief Black Hawk is blooming as noted in the photo below.

CBH-1

With most of the intersectional hybrid (ITOH) peonies, they have an extended bloom time due to the primary and secondary buds that bloom at different times. With three different fields to view intersectionals, each field, and in some cases the north side of the field is behind the south side, has them in different bloom stages. If you haven’t tried intersectionals yet, now is the time to see most of them in bloom so you can choose a plethora of colors and plant habitat. Foliage rules with intersectionals as they retain their shrub like appearance well into the fall. As I was walking through the fields tonight, a row of dark red garden peonies caught my eye. In the photo below, Highlight will be showing off over the next couple of days. Red Charm is on the right of this photo so Highlight really provides a different shade of red next to each other.

Highlight-1

Roaming through the field to the east of our driveway also revealed another garden peony called ‘The Mighty Mo’. This use to be the favorite color of the wholesale buyer of our peony cut flowers when we use to sell them.

Mo-1

Our most popular peony below called ‘Candy Stripe’ is in peak bloom over the next couple of days. Again you will see different bloom phases of Candy Stripe in the various fields.

Candy-1

For Friday, June 9, 2017, we will be open from 9 am to 5 PM for viewing our peonies. The fields and transition areas are dry so boots are not a necessity. With the 1/4″ of rain late yesterday, guess who started to view the peonies? Yes the way too friendly mosquitoes have arrived. With the wind though, they shouldn’t be too much of a bother but if you do need to put on bug dope just in case, make sure to spray in the parking area and NOT in the fields! Again we are a pet friendly peony farm as long as the owner is on a leash but with the high temps, make sure they have enough water and DO NOT leave them in your vehicle! Might be better with this heat to leave your pets at home but please note that their owners are very welcome! If this is your first visit to Swenson Gardens Peony Field Days, our address is 10958 70th ST SW, Howard Lake, MN. For insurance purposes we do have to state that we will not be liable for any loss and/or injury on our property so please be careful! With the extreme heat forecasted for Saturday, June 10, 2017, we will open from 7:30 am to 3:30 PM. We want all who are attending to be safe in these temperatures so make sure to bring plenty of water and sunscreen. We do have a mini biff in the parking area. For those of you who want to enjoy the peonies from a vehicle, it is ok to drive north on our driveway and turn around on top of the hill past our home. Please do not park in any areas other than our parking lot that is located directly east of our driveway as you turn north off of 70th ST SW. For those of you who will be walking, after parking your vehicle, go west towards our tent where more information will be given to you as well as a field map. Have a safe trip and can’t wait for you to see the peonies that are in bloom!

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