Paeonia lactiflora Marie lemoine

The 'Marie Lemoine' Peony is a very old French variety, white, late blooming and highly fragrant, with exquisite charm. This great classic has stood the test of time and is now finding its way back into our flowerbeds, much to the delight of plant enthusiasts who appreciate its stunning beauty and easy cultivation. Its large double flowers are a luminous white, revealing a light lemon-yellow heart amidst their numerous petals, and sometimes, a few ruby-red filaments at the centre, giving this variety a unique beauty. They bloom late, in June, on beautiful, fine, shiny, dark green foliage. While magnificent in the garden, these flowers are sublime in bouquets.

Chinese herbaceous peonies mainly come from Paeonia lactiflora, a perennial herbaceous plant native to Central and Eastern Asia (from eastern Tibet and northern China to eastern Siberia), where it naturally grows in woods and meadows. This plant belongs to the Ranunculaceae or Paeoniaceae family.

The 'Marie Lemoine' variety is a cultivar obtained in France in 1869 by Jacques Calot. The plant forms a herbaceous and bushy clump from spring onwards, reaching about 80 to 90 cm (32 to 35in) in all directions. Its large, 15 cm (6in) diameter, very double flowers appear very late in June, depending on the climate, lasting for about two weeks. They emerge as large white buds, then open into a compact, rather flat and skillfully disordered pompom. Their colour is a sparkling white, with pale lemon-yellow reflections accentuated at the heart of the flower. The petals in the centre of the corolla are often finely striated with red. The fragrance of this variety is both sweet and very noticeable. The young purple and shiny foliage unfolds into large, dark green, deeply cut leaves. They are borne on a petiole that divides into 3, with lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate segments. The leaflets are entire or sometimes lobed. They disappear in winter, while the buds that will develop in spring remain at ground level. This long-lived perennial plant grows from a large fleshy root that does not appreciate being moved.

Peonies are among those plants that form the foundations of a garden. In the past every garden, from the humblest to the most elaborate, proudly displayed clumps of peonies that made their way into the house, keeping lilacs and bluebells company in bouquets. Fragrant and candid, the Chinese peony 'Marie Lemoine' thrives in flowerbeds or along pathways, paired with timeless perennials such as columbines, bellflowers, perennial delphiniums, carnations, or Christmas roses. It can also be grown in the vegetable garden to supply cut flowers for the house. Only pot cultivation is not recommended, as its needs will not be met. Over time, the peony becomes majestic and blooms more and more abundantly, producing up to 60 flowers. A bouquet composed of 'Marie Lemoine' peonies, 'Pluie de Feu' Heuchera, and 'Buff Beauty' old roses will make a great impression in the house. 

3/5 high quality eyes, sold individually in pots.