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Scarlet O'Hara Peony flowers

(Photo courtesy of NetPS Plant Finder)

Ornamental Features

Scarlet O'Hara Peony features bold lightly-scented red cup-shaped flowers with yellow eyes at the ends of the stems from late spring to early summer. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its compound leaves remain green in color throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Scarlet O'Hara Peony is an herbaceous perennial with a more or less rounded 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 is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. Deer don't particularly care for this plant and will usually leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Scarlet O'Hara Peony is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Scarlet O'Hara Peony will grow to be about 30 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 3 feet. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 30 inches apart. The flower stalks can be weak and so it may require staking in exposed sites or excessively rich soils. 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 should only be grown in full sunlight. It prefers dry to average moisture levels with very well-drained soil, and will often die in standing water. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. 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.