Paeonia lactiflora 'Festiva Maxima' ~ Festiva Maxima Peony

Festiva Maxima is a fast-growing herbaceous perennial with red tinged stems that sport deep green leaves that turn orange in fall.  The heavy blooms of huge, fragrant double-petaled white flowers that can have a pink or crimson splash begins in late spring.  Prefers afternoon shade in southern areas and well-drained soils.  

MAINTENANCE NEEDS:  Medium Maintenance.  Water regularly- whenever top 3” of soil is dry. Botyrtis blight and Phytopthora blight are sometimes problems.  Flowers may need staking or stems may droop. Scale, Mealybugs, mites and beetles are occasional problems. Powdery mildew is common in fall but harmless.  If the plant doesn’t flower it is likely planted too shallow/deep or in too much shade.

LANDSCAPE USES:  Accents or Group Plantings, Borders, Woodland Gardens, Naturalized Areas, and Containers.

COMPANION PLANTS:  Bellflower, Coneflower, Hydrangea

Image: Kor!An (Андрей Корзун), Paeonia 'Festiva Maxima' 15, CC BY-SA 3.0