File:Peonies for pleasure (16208622220).jpg

that is the veriest folde-rol. Listen to this de-
scription of Monsier Jules Elie, the King of Peonies:
"What shall we sail of it? Enormous size, richest
coloring, sure free bloomer, clelicioushj perfumed,
the form so opulent of charm, so perfect in chisel-
ing as to he beyond compare, the overlapping
convex petalage a marvel of curves and sinuosi-
ties like fairy convolutions. The sunburst of color,
eloquent of divinest passion, radiating from a core
of glossy pink as from some mystic fountain con-
cealed under fluffy laciness, silvery pink here,
pearl pink there, and baby pink everywhere.
The colors blending and intermingling to a sheen
of satimj pink, lit bvj a sunset glow, a tiny flame
from the lambent furnace of some angel s heart;
the form combined with the color in a harmonious
whole difficult to describe; the petals winding in
and out and curved jauntihj as if consciously
recurving from the mass of marvelous bloom and
foliage around it; shimmering silvervj tones height-
ening up to a climax of richest pink in a natural
and indeed inevitable inflorescence. If you love
beauty this flower shoots through tjou an unwonted
thrill; vjou turn again and again that vjou might
verify and prolong the pulsing wave of poetrvj by
excluding the surroundings from your vision. The
colors gleam with light as if it were burnished
clouds touched by morning. It is indeed a won-
der of fragrant loveliness. Great is the King !
Overpraise? Why, the above with its numerous
tones and shades of pink does not tell half the
storvj. Compare it with the earlier descriptions of
some of the French varieties that read like this:
"Violaceous Pink." And then to think that amj
modem Peonvj salesman, after reading these French
descriptions, could onhj ejaculate, Huh! me too!
NEW INTRODUCTIONS
Manvj of the best Peonies have been introduced
in the past ten or fifteen years, being disseminated
by those painstaking Frenchmen, M. Dessert and
M. Lemoine. Nothing in die line of Peonies that
had gone before equaled or approached such
varieties as Alsace-Lorraine, Aurore, Bayadere,
Germaiiie Bigot, Enchantress, Le Cygne, La France,
Madame Emile Lemoine, Madame Jules Dessert,
Mignon, Monsieur Martin Cahuzac, Sarah Bern-
hardt, Solange, Therese, Tourangelle, etc.
Kelway, of England, has enriched Peonies for
all time bvj such superb sorts as Baroness Schroe-
der, Kelway s Glorious, James Kelway, etc.
Mr. Blaauw, of Holland, added a grand variety
recently in President Taft
These are necessarily higher in price than the
older sorts as they have been so recently sent out
and the stock of them is very limited, but let us
tell you that you will miss a large part of the
charm of the Peony until you see these wonders
of the floral creation. We could sell you fifty
thousand Festiva Maxima or twenty -five thousand
Marie Lemoine at prices quoted and be glad to
do so, but we could not sell you one hundred of
such varieties as Le Cygne, La France, Solange,
etc., for the reason they are not to be had at any
price, and at the prices quoted for them we are
not anxious to sell tliem. We make this assertion
and will stand by same diat die greatest creations
in Peonies the world has ever known are the
recent introductions of Messrs. Dessert and Lemoine.
The proof of the pudding is in the eating, and
it is almost the invariable rule of visitors to our
Peomj fields, while in bloom, to make choice of
these new varieties. We go to some length in
this matter as some dealers endeavor to create the
impression that most of the new Peonies are fakes;
we want if possible to correct this impression,
which is absolutely erroneous.
AMERICAN PEONIES
Of Peonies originating in America those by
John Richardson, of Massachusetts, from 1 857 to
1 887, are prominent. His Dorchester, Grandi-
flora, Milton Hill, etc., are of the finest varieties
in existence. George Hollis, also of Massachu-
setts, and IT. A. Terry, of Iowa, have sent out some
good varieties, but unfortunately for us die labors
of these uiree Peony growers are ended. The
Rev. Harrison and Mr. Roseufield, both of Ne-
braska, also Mr. Shay lor, of Massachusetts, have
very recently added to our Peony lists in America.
Mr. Brand, of Minnesota, commenced his work
with Peonies in 1 886. His Archie Brand, Eliza-
beth Barrett Browning, Frances Willard, Long-
fellow, Mary Brand, Martha Bulloch, Richard
Carvel, etc., are as good as the best. It behooves
every Peony enthusiast to keep his eye on the
Brand Peonies.
Let me introduce to you Brand's Peonies.
(The little child is showing vjou a .lower of the
famous Martha Bulloch.)
Miss Ella V j Baines, Spring field, Ohio.