I know some of you have peonies growing in your garden. They are so lovely in vases around the home. Celebrating the peonies is something we do. For several years, I have stored peony buds in the refrigerator for a month, and brought them out for a Fourth of July celebration.
"Commercial cut flower operations pick their peony buds and can successfully store them for up to three months. This practice allows them to extend the marketing season as the peony bloom period is short. The home gardener or small producer can also save their flowers for a later occasion but because the home refrigerator typically cools to a range of 2-4 C , as opposed to the commercial 0 C, the storage time frame is reduced to two to three weeks. Not all peony flowers are the same though, some varieties have a longer vase life and store better than others but almost all will hold a few days in the vase after storage. The peony buds are stored dry, packaged in plastic, and placed flat on the shelves of the refrigerator. Alternately they can be stored upright in buckets with a few inches of water. When storing dry, remove almost all of the leaves as they tend to produce too much moisture when bagged resulting in the buds rotting. Bunch the stems together and place in a plastic bag, any bag will do but the two gallon Ziploc work well, place them flat on the shelves of the refrigerator. Moisture is the key to successful storage, too wet and they mold. Check them periodically, if there is moisture build-up open the bag to vent or place paper towels in the bottom and remove and replace them when they get wet. Upon removal from storage don’t worry if the blossoms look wilted and the cut ends are dry. Re-cut the stems to expose clean fresh tissue and place upright in a bucket containing warm water. I allow at least 24 hours for opening especially if the flowers are wanted to decorate a special event."
I finished planting my garden today as we typically wait until the May full moon to plant. We've had exceptional weather this week - Woo Hoo.
xo
Deb
Love that first one:) Your Warrior on your sidebar is adorbs:)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful!!
ReplyDeleteEach one is gorgeous! I wish peonies grew here. Earlier today I was stitching with a friend who said she had peonies growing in her garden in Santa Fe and laminated having to leave them behind. I told her about cutting them and keeping them refrigerated for later use. She'd never heard of this trick. Enjoy your peonies now and later.
ReplyDeleteOpps, my comment disappeared!
ReplyDeleteDebbie, each variety is beautiful. How lucky you are to have peonies growing in your garden. I wish they grew here! Juat this morning I was stitching was a friend and she was laminting having to leave her peony blooms behind in her garden in Santa Fe. I told her about the trick to cut the blooms, wrap them in paper, and store in a refrigerator to bring out to bloom later. She is going to tray that. Enjoy these beautiful blooms.
I’m impressed with all your peony varieties, Debbie, and how you store the buds to bring out for the 4th! I’ll bet your garden is spectacular! Happy Memorial Day weekend ❤️🇺🇸💙
ReplyDeleteI need to try storing them for later blooms! Thanks for all the info, Debbie. The first one is so unusual and lovely!
ReplyDeleteSuch a pretty flower, but those ants!!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous varieties, Deb! I did preserve a few of mine this year, and will do more in years to come. They made beautiful additions to a couple flower arrangements I made. A neighbor of mine used to live in Kansas and she noted the people there very typically would refrigerate them for a Thanksgiving arrangement!
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