Hollingsworth Nursery
Breeder and Propagator of Fine Peonies

2008  Overview

Visitors are welcome, especially during flowering season. The farm is open daily during daylight hours, look around at your leisure.

Previous visitors may know that when the soil is fit for vehicular traffic we can allow drive through for benefit of visitors for whom walking on the uneven ground is a challenge. However, last year the moisture that was favorable for the peonies also prevented access by automobile most days of the flowering season. At this writing it appears we may have favorable moisture again such that we recommend you do not plan on being able to drive close to the peonies. We hasten to add, however, there is unobstructed view from both the parking area and the public road for much of the planting area.

During the flowering season we intend to publish weekly updates here at the web site on conditions and the peony types that can be seen during the upcoming week. When the weather reports show storm fronts crossing our area, do come prepared to walk in muddy rows if you wish to get close to the flowers. All of our peonies are near to and extending out from the farmstead. We do not restrict any part of the planting from visitor access. The peonies occupy about six acres and with the sodded areas between cultivated plots the walking can be as much as you want. Allow yourself enough freedom of schedule to devote as much time as you wish to the viewing.

At our latitude near the north boundary of Missouri Peony, flowering commences the last days of April and extends through the first week of June. The number of sorts in flower will be few at the start and decline again as the season tapers off in June. The different kinds in flower will increase rapidly through the second week of May when many of the Early Hybrids and Suffruticosa type tree peonies will have peaked. During the following ten days Lutea Hybrid tree peonies and the Midseason Herbaceous sorts will be showing their novel colors to great advantage. From the 20th of May and into the first week of June the well known and much loved Lactiflora sorts will dominate the flowering display. This is also when you can also see the most modern in peonies, the Itoh Hybrids, among which will be seen some of the finest yellow flower colors.

There are more than 1100 different peonies and approximately 27,000 plants growing in the collection at this time, those in production for the catalog in up to four different ages and sometimes ten different field locations. A large share of the collection is made up of our own seedlings and seedlings of others being grown for further evaluation and breeding. A large share of these will flower on three and four year plants this year, the majority opening among the Early and Midseason Herbaceous Hybrids.

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