Feedback on this website from Bjørnar Olsen
Hallo Dr. Carsten Burkhardt, Sie haben ein neues Feedback von Herr/Frau Bjørnar Olsen erhalten.
Folgende Daten wurden übermittelt:
Name : Bjørnar Olsen
E-Mail : trippelprikken@hotmail.com
Land : Norwegen
Kommentar : It seems Walmart is planning to make a tradition of importing and renaming chinese lactiflora-cultivars after their success with 'Lavender Lady', this years hit was called 'Blue Lagoon'. There was a long discussion at the peony-forum on GardenWeb, I've included some links below.
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/peony/msg0321194831740.html
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/peony/msg041125421698.html?35
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/peony/msg0514335121567.html
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/peony/msg0619420932569.html?11
Also, thanks for making the best peony-page out there! Regards, Bjørnar
greetings to Norway and many thanks for the links. I don't have the time to follow all the garden related forums. This one is a really interesting. I'll collect some of the messages from this and put them into my website. Than will be finally some more information available on this onnline. Many thanks again. I hope nobody from the „Gardenweb“ writers has any obstickles against this. I have removed all personal data, like names and email addresses:
Feedback on this website from Bjørnar Olsen
Hallo, I'm glad you are going to include 'Blue Lagoon' on your webpage, the posts on GardenWeb are unfortunately deleted after a while, so the information would have been lost. I am afraid the practice of importing and renaming peonies from China is getting more common; a local nursery sold several varieties of peonies this spring, all large plants with several flower-buds, for a very modest price (far too cheap to be European-grown). They all had "Chinese-looking" labels and western names written in "Chinese-looking" fonts, but unfortunately I didn't take much notice of them so I can't recall any of the names used. I'm visiting the nursery again on wednesday, so I'll let you know if I find out more. Regards, Bjørnar
everybody who makes a business with chinese peonies has the problem, that the chinese names are not attractive to thei costumers. If you offer a 'Xue Zhong Qing', nobody buys it, if you put it out as with 'Rocks Variety', everybody is surprised to get it as cheap! But the case of 'Blue Lavender' is again different, because somebody must have made a giant advertising for it, on the end the prizes went up. I'll ask around in the yahoo-group, maybe somebody over there has an opinion.
not registered
of ?? With high probability a renamed chinese cultivar. Maybe Fen Yu Nu??
Blue Lagoon Bareroot @ Wallyworld (link)Posted on Thu, Mar 10, 05 Has anyone heard of the Blue Lagoon peony. I tried googleing but nothing except for a tree peony. This is bareroot and probably is a bush from Walmart. If anybody has any experience with bagged bareroot peonies please advise me. Thanks in advance.
Follow-Up Postings:
* Posted on Fri, Mar 11, 05 The Heartland Peony society has a peony search database and I searched for this Blue Lagoon and nothing comes up. So, my hunch is that who ever supplys peony to Wal-Mart had some un-named, mis-named, etc. peony that they just boxed up and re-named Blue Lagoon. I'm sure it will make a nice filler plant just don't count on it to look like the peony on the box.
* Posted on Fri, Mar 11, 05 I agree with Diann. Last year on ebay there was a Lavender Lady that I was assured that had been growing in the sellers yard for years. The next weekend there it was at Walmart. At the time the discussion thought that Lady was one of the renamed Chinese cultivars that have been being introduced to commerce. If you purchase the plant enjoy it for what it is. Remember not all pictures are as good or as bad as the original. Blue is generally a pinkish color not the Blue that someone will develope and market one of these days.
What I am waiting for are some of the Russian (Siberia) very cold hardy plants to be put in the market. Several of the european sites have a few but just as the west is unaware of many of the Chinese cultivars I am certain that given the size of the former USSR the variety of plants should be very large.
* Posted on Mar 14, 05 Yup, Walmart has them. 2 in a bag for $5. I bought a bag. What the heck, for $5? I will wait to see what they look like. If I don't like them, not out much $$.
* Posted Mar 16, 05 I also did the same as Mary Lu. 2 for $5 is a minimal investment, and it will be interesting to see how they turn out. The photo on the label makes it appear that the flower is a light lavender/purple color (not blue), and if it turns out anwhere close to that I'll be pleasantly surprised. ;-)
* Posted Y on Wed, Mar 16, 05 I just got Blue Lagoon too, the price was just too good & such healthy roots. I bought the Lavendar Lady last year when it went on clearance, 3 in packet for that one, & all came up with great strong stems but too late to bloom I guess. I really am looking forward to it this year to see what it will look like. Also just bought sorbet from Walmart. After last year's purchase I had been waiting & looking for their peonies to come in & they never did. I finally realized "Hey, they just built a new big Walmart across town", well apparently that is where they sent most of their better stuff.
* Posted on Thu, Mar 17, 05 I am new to this site and impressed with all the helpful information. I too just bought Blue lagoon peony, 2 for $5.00 in a bag from Wally world. Nice roots. I will be anxious to see if they bloom close to the color pictured. I also can't seem to find any pictures or helpful information confirming it's identity to be true to advertisement. I belive if they are going to sell a plant they should research more carefully since they state 100% satisfaction. If mine does not bloom close to the color advertised, I will return them just to let them know this practice of selling plants that are not as advertised is not acceptable.
* Posted on Fri, Mar 18, 05 GOOD morning everyone, I also run across "Blue Lagoon" and bought 2 bags,one to give to my mother-in-law.
* Posted on Mar 19, 05 Well I just got back from Wal-Mart. I, too, bought two bags of "Blue Lagoon," having never heard of them before, figuring that for 5 bucks a bag, I'd rather go ahead and buy them than come home, Google "Blue Lagoon peony," and wish I'd bought them while I was there. And I, too, have found absolutely nothing on the web about this variety. Ha Ha! Guess there are a lot of eager gardeners who are trying to force the spring :) I'll be interested to see what these things really look like when they bloom. I'm guessing that won't be until next year, but we'll see. Keep me posted if anybody can find a picture of this type online, or comes across an explanation for its obscurity!
* Posted on Sun, Mar 20, 05 I was just wondering...how are you storing your Blue Lagoons until you can plant them? Mine have the red eyes already and it is winter here yet. Right now I am keeping them in our unheated bedroom (usually about 55 degrees) Will this be cool enough for them? i believe the pic on the front of the package is one of the growers tulips if you check out the grower on the web they have a pic of a double lavender blue tulip that is identical to the pic on the package of peonies.
* Posted on Thu, Mar 24, 05 There is this photo on eBay, so far the only photo on the web that I've been able to find that isn't from the Wally packaging. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=75662&item=4367700675&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW
The auction doesn't state much, except "2 PREMIUM NUMBER 1 SIZE TUBEROUS ROOT" which implies that it is probably the same packaging as all the other Wally auctions up there. (Good for them, the other sellers, hope they are prepared for returns though if necessary. I'm all for free enterprise if they back up their product.)
The photo this seller used looks like it might be digitally modified, like the greens and shadows are too dark and uniform to each other, perhaps a blue tint was cast over a pinkish bloom? But maybe I'm wrong, maybe it is actually a Blue Lagoon photo. Haven't received a reply from the seller yet. What do you think?
Here is a link that might be useful: A different photo of Blue Lagoon on eBay.
That picture link is to my site. It is a scan of the Wally package which is why I'm so curious as to where Marcy found the tulip picture she was talking about. If it's true I'll have to pull that picture.
Vikk, I didn't notice that the eBay seller says "no returns". (Still no word back from that person either.) Just goes to show... ...Buyer Beware.
I am guilty of selling this mystery peony too, but I back everything I send with a 2 year No-Questions-Asked warranty. Don't like it, send it back (dead or alive) with payment slip for a full refund including shipping. It can always be resold as an unidentified peony later at the farmers markets. Seems everybody should have a chance to back out if a certain variety doesn't live up to their expectations.
Because I AM selling Blue Lagoon is why I'm trying so hard to research this mystery plant. Snatched them up on a whim and already repackaged them... might be too late to return them! We'll see what happens.
Oh yeah, Jon, keep them as dark and as cold as you can to slow their growth. Wally has already broken their dormancy for you. You can also get them in the ground as soon as you possibly can. You can always move them later. (I know, that's not what the experts say, but I've been moving peonies all over the yard at all times of the year. They are very strong willed.) If you plan on finishing your new bed before bloom season arrives down there put them in pots like you mentioned. If you can't keep them bareroot at 33F (or just above freezing) get them outside into pots. Best way to move them around and save some of the blooms. And always keep the buds at or just above the ground level... ...too deep means loss of blooms or death. Good luck!
* Posted on Fri, Mar 25, 05 Hey Perrence! Thanks for all the tips - I've potted them and plan to keep them in the cold garage for the next few weeks - probably plant in the fall. Didn't want to put them in a permanent spot without seeing what they REALLY look like :) I specifically looked for bags in which the eyes were still just starting (some already were leafing out - yikes). These are really good size tubers, too. Some have 6 or 7 eyes on 'em. So, if I read your note right, you haven't actually seen this bloom either? When I saw the pic on your web site, I was heartened that it looked so similar in color to the package. Also - have you ever heard of this variety before? I still can't find any background. The closest thing in appearance is a japanese tree peony that starts with a "K" - same color but with an orangey-yellow eye. Anyway - appreciate the intro - small world!
* Posted on Fri, Mar 25, 05 at 21:11 Nope, I'm afraid I'm like everybody else, trying to track down any information what-so-ever on this mystery. I'd like to call the supplier but haven't been able to find a website for them, have to search the old fashioned way. Another route would be to contact the peony society, see if they have done any research into the matter. There is also the chance that if it is actually a "Blue Lagoon" peony that it was never officially registered as a variety. I have a daylily named "Bodacious Returns" from a reputable nursery. It is from their own breeding work but it was apparently never registered. I agree with you, these were some gorgeous peony roots/eyes, whatever the blooms look like.
* Posted on Sun, Mar 27, 05 I bought a bag too. I figure even if they aren't blue or lavender I'll get a peony anyway. I only have a few and the price was right! Lenore
* Posted on Sun, Mar 27, 05 Right on qbirdy, price is right for populating the garden!
* Posted on Fri, Apr 29, 05 Whew! Glad I got outbid on the spendy Blue Lagoons on eBay. That'll teach me to read the forums first! I'm going to check out Wally World anyway!
* Posted on Sun, May 1, 05 checked out all the Walmarts within a reasonable distance, and they have NONE..never even heard of them....so I ended up buying a couple of Blue Lagoons on Ebay(not "cheap", but they were about what you pay from most mail order Peony sources anyway, so I figured it was my best option to try them out) I doubt Walmarts in my area of the state even got any in stock because Peonies really don't grow very well at the low elevations in the West. I am at a high altitude and we get cold winters, so they love it where I am, but I have to either buy peonies at local nurseries if they get them in, or by Mail Order....GardenLove
Wally's Blue Lagoon Researched Deeper (link)
Posted on Mon, Apr 4, 05 Hello Everybody, This Blue Lagoon peony at Walmart has everybody baffled, including me. Nobody seems to have any information on what this peony is all about. Here's what I was able to research:
It is supplied by Garden State Bulb Co. which has a website with no pictures and no contact info. After several modifications of Garden State Bulb keywords in Google I was able to track down several phone numbers, most were out of service or were fax numbers. One, however, actually worked!
I talked with Ray (assuming Ray Meade Jr. the listed Managing Officer.) He said that Blue Lagoon is a marketing name for this peony which is NOT a registered variety. He could tell me nothing more about this variety.
I tried going higher up the chain of command. After calling back several days I was finally able to connect to Peter (Langevelt -sp?) who might (if I understand correctly) actually be the owner of Garden State Bulb. Here is his discussion...
...Blue Lagoon is a marketing name for an unregistered herbaceous peony out of china. His Chinese suppliers re-assure him that it is a blue peony though he (Peter) has not seen it bloom. Peter is planting a patch of Blue Lagoon peony in his test gardens this year (2005). He did say that blooms will shift in colors based on different growing conditions, soil types, etc etc (the industry catch-all answer for variations in color.) He also stated that he could not divulge the name of Chinese supplier when I asked. What does this mean to us? It means that 2 peonies for $5 is still dirt cheap so if your Wally World still has them it wouldn't hurt to give them a try. Either they will be some spectacular lavender kind of peony or they won't! We are all (including the U.S. supplier GSB) waiting to see what the bloom looks like.
Follow-Up Postings:
* Posted Mon, Apr 4, 05 Thanks bunches, this is still exciting though. If they aren't completely pink I'll be happy. By the way they are all sold out at the Walmart by me.
* Posted on Fri, Apr 8, 05 Please, please, please... somebody post pictures as soon as theirs blooms! We are all chomping at the bit. :-)
* Posted by: pappu z5 IL on Mon, Apr 11, 05 at 21:09
Incredibly, all the wally peonies I bought have buds! Blue lagoon, sorbet and festiva maxima. The 28$ red charm from Wayside that I planted last fall has no buds...go figure! Will post pictures of blue lagoon as soon as the bud opens...
* Posted on Fri, Apr 15, 05 I have seen a lot of them up for auction on Ebay. So that is probably why you have found so many empty boxes.
* Posted on Sun, Apr 17, 05 I bet it is similar to this peony, which is a lavender pink...
I just bought several of these on eBay. Below is a link to one of the photos of Blue Lagoon that is currently for sale on eBay. I don't think they are tree peonies. If you want any, get them quick as the prices on eBay have increased quite a bit over the past month. I'll post a photo if I get any blooms from the ones I just purchased. Here is a Photo on eBay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=94946&item=4373578369&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW
* Posted on Mon, Apr 18, 05 I just put mine in..and can't wait to see what color they come out.Thanks for doing the research.
* Posted on Tue, Apr 19, 05 Wow, just checked out eBay, can't believe the prices they are selling for! Especially considering I got 2 bags for a total of 4 for $10... I'm smiling, even if they do come up pink.
* Posted on Tue, Apr 19, 05 I called 36 Walmarts in the Twin Cities area (from St. Cloud to Hutchinson to Mankato) and everybody says they are sold out. I was selling them on my website and nobody was interested. Then one day they all sold out within a couple days. This was also about the same time I did all the calling around, and the same time the eBay Blue Lagoons went from $10 to over $20... ...for a peony that nobody in the U.S. has ever seen bloom! What we are witnessing is an insane plant fad based on potentially false advertizing and altered photos. How high do you think the prices will get before the craze is over?
Incidentally, every single Blue Lagoon being sold in the U.S. right now is from Walmart who is the only customer for this variety from Garden State Bulb who is the only supplier of Blue Lagoon in the U.S. from what I've been told. And Garden State is sold out and will not confirm that they are going to carry it next year. They will probably have some other similarly mysterious peony on the early racks next year. Remember to keep your eyes open 2006. Congratulations to everybody who bought theirs at Walmart! You did good! So again, any guesses as to how high the prices will get? $50? $75? $100?
* Posted on Tue, Apr 19, 05 It's just crazy isn't it? I wonder how many people paying that much are going to plant them and how many are going to try to turn around and sell them again. I bought them because they were really nice roots for a really cheap price. I'm definitely NOT expecting them to be anything but pink but I'm sure I'll like them anyway. If I had $100 to spend on a peony I'd grab one of the Itoh hybrids.
* Posted on Thu, Apr 21, 05 you know its funny so many garden snobs i use that term in a kindly way, dont mean to be offensive but... i was just at my neighborhood nursery, one of the best, excellent quality, great prices and they say they purchase a great deal from langerveld
so because they purchase a 2 eye peony root from langerveld and repot selling for 20.00 doesnt mean their plant is better then the 5.00 for 2 roots from walmart (langerveld supplier) with from 3-5 eyes. and why do people talk about doctored photos? if this peony was being sold at the local nursery for 150.00 with the same pic on the plastic tag in the pot nobody would say a word about doctoring. reserve judgement til they flower, open minds let in new ideas, nuff said
* Posted on Thu, Apr 21, 05 I didn't get mine planted right away as it was too early for our zone. But kept them in a cool/dark place. They are in the ground now and eyes are peeking through on all 4. Doubt I'll get any blossoms this year. Please, anyone who does got blooms, let us know what COLOR they are?
* Posted on Fri, Apr 22, 05 Hi Your statements are exactly correct, the vast majority of the trendy little locally owned quality garden centers buy in a ton of wholesale stock from the same or similar wholesale suppliers that everybody else stocks their shelves with, using the same picture tags. In my opinion ALL of the wholesale nursery tags and catalog photos are 'altered'. If you look closely at some of those nice tight clumps of daylily Olive Bailey Langdon blooms at Walmart it becomes obvious that mother nature typically does not place all of her blooms facing exactly the same direction and all perfectly spaced equi-distant from each other, packed tightly into a nice tidy, small clump of foliage. The blooms were obviously staged for the shoot. Another example of altering is airbrushing. Two years ago (2003) there was a huge stink over the Dutch Gardens catalog photo of Hemerocallis Blueberry Sundae. If you look at the detail of the purple edging where the petals overlap you will see that the (airbrushed) edging does not follow the flow of the overlap. I pointed this out to one of their call center reps and the answer was "They re-assure us that there was no airbrushing of the photos in this catalog." Yet there is no actual daylily photo of Blueberry Sundae online that looks anything like that photo. Another form of altering is color, shade, and tone enhancing. A current favorite is the Startle daylily. The nursery tag is a brilliant hot pink but every actual photo online shows more of a hot burgundy flower. As for Blue Lagoon photo altering... consider this statement that I received from a gardenweb visitor just today:
"hi i was the who emailed in re to pic of blue lagoon being a tulip, i got on to the langerveld web site looking for info on blue lagoon peony couldnt find
anything but... found a pic of a double blue tulip that was the identical pic on the blue lagoon label, went back about a month later to the langerveld web site pic of double blue tulip was gone, in its place was a burgundy sort of color double tulip. hmmm.... " Makes me wonder.
Anyway, I will agree on all your points. If I come across as a snob, my apologies. I am engaged in this conversation because I could find absolutely nothing in reference to Blue Lagoon, anywhere. And wasn't the only person. So I researched, and now am sharing so that everybody can benefit from our combined efforts. Also, if you read back a bit, you will find another poster who claimed that a different peony root they bought from a "high quality" mail order source was actually inferior in quality to the Walmart peonies. The early sales peonies from Walmart were great quality. I bought several for my garden. The question is whether Blue Lagoon is being truthfully represented by Garden State Bulb. We all want to know what it looks like when it blooms. Was Langeveld printed on the package somewhere? I thought I looked and couldn't find anything. You are the second person to use that name but when I called Walmart's corporate office they looked it up for me and said that Garden State Bulb was the supplier for Blue Lagoon, and Ray Meade Jr at GSB confirmed that Walmart was their customer (and only customer) for Blue Lagoon. Hope that clarifies where I'm coming from.
* Posted on Sun, Apr 24, 05 Well, put me down as another one who bought the Blue Lagoon, I stuck it in a pot, it is growing and now it is out on the front porch (enclosed/unheated) getting ready for the great outdoors. My opinion? Hey, if I don't like it my novice gardening daughter and sister will inherit it! They will never know the difference. And my curiousity will be satsified!
* Posted on Fri, Apr 29, 05 I bought a package of the 'Blue Lagoon' Peony at the end of March and gave one to my Mother. She potted hers up and placed it in front of a patio door. It bloomed last week. The blooms were made up of single narrow petals in a light pinkish lavender color with a dark pinkish purple swathe down the center of the petals. The centers were bright yellow and fuzzy. They weren't what I was expecting and reminded me of a large Clematis blossom. I wish I had thought to take a picture but only happened upon this post today. Although this Peony certainly isn't blue (at least this one wasn't) it is different from any others I have and just the suspense alone was worth $5.00.
* Posted on Fri, Apr 29, 05 "just the suspense alone was worth $5.00" Lori LOL! I totally agree. This is entertaining me too. I have buds on some of mine too. Unfortunately I lost track of which ones were Blue Lagoon and which ones were whatever the other one was (raspberry sundae or sorbet I think). I will definitely post a pic when it blooms
* Posted on Mon, May 2, 05 Can't wait to see your pic. I am wondering if all the peonies sold as Blue Lagoon will all look the same or if there will be many variations.(I'll keep mine no matter what it looks like, all Peonies are welcome here.)I tried to get the raspberry one also but they were all gone. I will check again just to be sure.
* Posted on Mon, May 2, 05 I wonder which of us will get blooms first Lori. I went out in my winter coat and gloves today!
* Posted on Mon, May 2, 05 Lori-I bought Lavendar Lady last year at Walmart, mine just bloomed & looks exactly as you describe the blue lagoon to be. I bought the blue lagoon too this year. However, only 1 Lavendar has bloomed so far, one has no buds, & the 3rd one has buds that are much deeper than the 1st one, very red/maroon. I'm anxious to see what it looks like.
* Posted on Tue, May 3, 05 The moment of truth approaches :)
* Posted on Wed, May 4, 05 I remember the flap about Blueberry Sundae, and I'm skeptical of that place ever since. The latest one I noticed seems too good to be true is "Spacecoast Starburst." Small world. I imagine thousands of northern gardeners entertaining themselves in the winter time by reading the same catalogs, and the same things seem to catch our eye. Seems like there's some magic obsession with unattainable colors in any popular category (usually true blue or true red). I've seen it with peonies, clematis, roses, daylilies and others. Although I did read that genetic engineers in Japan have actually produced the first-ever true blue rose using pigment genes from a ... petunia?
Ever check out the Garden Watchdog? I've found a lot of great tips there on retailers - and caveats, too. Oh - about Blue Lagoon - you may remember that I also bought two bags at W-mart in March, potted 'em up and put 'em in the garage. Now they're on the patio, and they have thick stems and flower buds on them. We shall see...I agree with others here who've said that the mystery and anticipation are very entertaining. Heck - how many ways can you get this much amusement and fascination for 10 bucks these days?
Back to Blue Lagoon... any bloom pictures out there yet?? We've had one report of a single petalled flower with a center, any others?
* Posted on Wed, May 11, 05 How are those blooms coming along? In another post (Blue Lagoon Peony Blooms!) they talk about a single flower with soft pink petals and a yellow center, but they didn't have a photo.
We need pictures! Some of you southerners must have Blue Lagoon in bloom by now... share your picts please. :-)
* Posted on Wed, May 11, 05 Yes, PLEASE? Mine are growing but does not look like I w
Picture of Blue Lagoon Peony (link)
Posted by dandeelion z4 WI on Wed, May 18, 05 at 14:33
Hello there, This is my first time posting so please bear with me. I'm here today to share a picture of one of my 'Blue Lagoon Peonies' in bloom. I've pampered this plant for some time now waiting for flowers and was disappointed to find out that when it flowers it's not blue at all but single pink with yellow stamens. I've never seen a ugly peony and this one isn't but it's just heartbreaking that the picture on the package didn't match the root that I've planted some months back. I'm holding out thinking that maybe...just maybe with age it will mature to blue but I'm not going to hold my breath. Thank you for taking the time to read this and hope that the picture helps those of you who have had the same burning question as me about what it looks like when the plant blooms. Sorry for any disappointment I may have caused but better to know now than spend upwards $30 on one plant buying from eBay or elsewhere. (PS-if the picture don't work please let me know. I have no clue how to attach a actual picture to this post so I'm hoping that the URL works for you.)
Follow-Up Postings:
* Posted on Wed, May 18, 05 LOL! What we've all been waiting for! Thats hysterical! I bought 2 of them. I still like it though! THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN UGLY PEONY. :) :)THANKS SO MUCH FOR POSTING THE PIC!
* Posted on Wed, May 18, 05 Glad to be of help. But a note on the picture. The bloom is tad lighter than the picture shows. It's more pink than red. Just sort of burns by buns that it isn't what was pictured on the package and now I have to change my much thought out planting scheme but oh well. All 8 of the Blue Lagoons that I have will be much loved just the same! And who knows? In the meantime sometime soon maybe there really will be such a thing as a double blue flowering peony? Wouldn't that be wonderful?!
* Posted by: on Wed, May 18, 05 dandeelion welcome to GardenWeb! You're the winner in the "Blue Lagoon" sweepstakes LOL. I'm sorry about your planting scheme. I knew it wouldn't be blue, but I will love it anyway - I agree - no ugly peonies. Those of us who spent $5 for two roots won't be nearly as disappointed as those who spent much more on Ebay.
* Posted on Wed, May 18, 05 Thanks for the warm welcome! :+) I've used this website quite a few times over the years and wow. What a amazing wealth of information a person can get on anything!!!!! Except for the Blue Lagoon Peony! I did a internet search some time back and where do you think it brought me? Yep! GW! I'm always amazed at the posts and while never a member before today I've wanted to write each and all a hearty "thank you" for helping me some sort of struggle I've had that they unknowingly helped me with! So hence the picture of the Blue Lagoon. It's just my way of trying to help right back. Luckily I was one of those fortunate ones who didn't pay to much for my roots either. Buy it now at $11.99 for two roots so while a bit bummed...I'm still happy...although...I have near 50 peonies that I'm going to be planting this year (amongst many other plants)...can you say..."Spring is almost over and where did summer go"?! Anyway I forgot to mention that the bloom is about 3 1/2 inches across. I'm not sure that with a few years time they will get bigger or this is it? I also noticed that the flower closes up at night. I've never pampered a peony quite like this one so now
my curiosity is up if the other ones I have planted do the same thing or not?!
* Posted on Wed, May 18, 05 Considering Blue Lagoon is a Walmart Special for so many of us there is still a good chance of a lot of different peonies out there! Thanx for the picture :) I'm pampering my Blue Lagoon still, its got buds and is growing happily so maybe I'll get flowers too. I agree, no such thing as an ugly peony!
* Posted on Wed, May 18, 05 a And a happy thank you too Lenore for the most wonderful welcome! And I'm more than happy that you got a preview of what you might have in your Blue Lagoon. Now if I get good enough at this I will be able to hopefully attach pictures instead of a link! Since I took that picture this morn the second bud on the same plant had opened. Same color though. Not blue. Amazing how quickly the plant shows it's gorgeousness after such a long wait! (But better than the typical two to three years time span!) I hope that you get your blooms just a fast! I'm wondering something however? Some time back someone told me that with hydrangias (sp?) you need to amend the soil to get them to bloom blue. Think this could be possible with this plant? Hummmmmmm....?
* Posted on Wed, May 18, 05 you might want to check out the Heartland Peony Society's web page. It's full of interesting stuff about peonies. ;) And welcome to Garden Web.
* Posted on Thu, May 19, 05 hello first time here, i started growing peonies three years ago in memory of my grandmother! i saw the blue lagoon on ebay. i am glad that i found this web site, what people are geting for one root is crazy. i called all the area nurseries in my state and no one heard of them!! i found a web site that states it might be a shame becasue it looks more like a peony type tulip that breks have in their catalog.
* Posted on Thu, May 19, 05 My blue lagoon bloomed too, looks like yours, deep pink/red & if you look at it in the right light & squint you might see a purplish hue. As the flower faded it did look more blue, but it certainly is nothing like the picture and you still have to use your imagination :) My Walmart purchases from last year of Lavendar Lady had 3 plants in the package. The first plant was light pink with neat darker pink streaking on the petals, the next plant was very similar to the Blue lagoon. The 3rd plant did not bloom, but I am curious because the foliage on each of the 3 was different in coloring. Makes me wonder what the other Blue lagoon plant will bloom, or the Sorbet I got from them :)Keeps life interesting. Like you said, both Blue Lagoon & Lavendar Lady seemed to close up at night. Do all single peonies do that?
I love both of these though, I had no single peonies so this worked out well. Wonder what Walmart will have next year.
* Posted on Thu, May 19, 05 I'm the first person that inquired about this plant here on GW and feel bad about it. This is such a disappointment but I didn't pay much for them at Wallyworld. I really feel sorry for all the people that bought these on Ebay and didn't know that they might not be what the picture portrayed. Us forumers were lucky to know ahead of time that Blue Lagoon could be a sham. I'm not surprised Wallyworld would mislead its customers especially since they come out with mislabled roses year after year. It may even be possible to get money back from Wallyworld, but all those misguided customers on Ebay really got ripped off.
Wally's Blue Lagoon Researched Deeper continued (link) ill get any blooms this season.
* Posted on Sun, May 29, 05 I have a bud on one of the BL's I planted. I think after looking at some of the Chinese sites that blue peonies mean pink with a bluish cast.
* Posted on Sun, May 29, 05 What a dissapointment after the wild anticipation! My blue lagoon looked nothing like the pictures.... a single row of pink petals with yellow stamens...not even a purplish overcast....wonder what will happen to the sellers on ebay, with bids going up to $50.00....all those refunds...
* Posted on Sun, May 29, 05 Mine weren't soft pink but more like magenta. Very like Pink Jade (Remark of Dr. Carsten Burkhardt: Pink Jade is a renamed Fen Yu Nu, see there) as seen at http://www.paradisegarden.com/shop/searchresults.php?category=Peonies&browse=4:Single&special=Single;
The petals may have been more single & a bit longer. The only blue it had was as the flower faded it look blue/lavendar. It is a very pretty peony though & since I didn't have one I am very pleased with it. A peony collector would be unhappy though, especially if they paid $50 for it. All I had before the Blue Lagoon & Lavendar Lady from Walmart were doubles which had to be staked to keep the flowers off the ground & these don't.
* Posted on Mon, May 30, 05 doubt very seriously that most of the resellers will give refunds. Only one seller that has been posting here has stated unequivocally that they would stand behind their offerings. You can bet your sweet bippy that some buyers are going to totally seeing red!
* Posted on Wed, Jun 1, 05 Where are the pictures? Please?
* Posted on Thu, Jun 2, 05 All of my peonies have big buds (some almost golf ball sized) and not one has opened yet. They're just sitting there. The Blue Lagoon has three buds just about to open. I even tried to help it along a little today LOL. Crossing my fingers that maybe tomorrow it'll open.
You've waited a long time - Here's Blue Lagoon! (link)
Posted by jackie_o 5OH on Thu, Jun 2, 05 at 19:42
My Wally World Blue Lagoon is finally opening. I knew it wouldn't be blue but I'm actually very happy with what I got. I LIKE singles. They stand up better without a lot of staking. I think the blooms will get bigger and perhaps fuller with some age on them.
Posted Fri, Jun 3, 05 How is the fragrance? Since mine aren't going to bloom this year..I need something to look forward to. Great pictures..thanks for sharing.
* Posted on Fri, Jun 3, 05 I'd be p'd off if someone sold me a blue peony and I got that. But then I don't like pink ;) On a similar vein, I saw the "blue" rose in someone's garden today. The one that they introduced a couple of years ago, best ever and all that. It was lilac I guess you could call it, a sort of dull dusky lilac. More blue than this peony, but not blue. Should have taken pics.
* Posted on Fri, Jun 3, 05 H Shrubs. I may be in the minority here, but I really don't even want a blue peony or a blue rose. It's unnatural and they almost always look like you said, washed out and not very pretty. I've got plenty of real blue flowers to enjoy. Elayne it's got a bit of fragrance but nothing to write home about. I wouldn't judge it's performance in any category until maybe year three though.
* Posted on Fri, Jun 3, 05 .Ok, so it's not really blue...I also like the singles and it really is lovely. Any fragrance?
* Posted o Fri, Jun 3, 05 Kinda looks like Doreen to me. I have Doreen and I'm not sure I would be able to tell the difference.Still pretty. And oh, I like singles too.
* Posted on Sun, Jun 5, 05 Mine is just blooming also, certainly NOTHING like on the package, but they are very nice. I will see if I can get a picture posted.
* Posted on Mon, Jun 6, 05 I think the worst tree peony I've ever seen was still pretty nice :)
* Posted on Thu, Jun 9, 05
Sorry it took so long, here is what I got as Blue Lagoon. I like it anyway!
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*Posted on Thu, Jun 9, 05 It doesnt matter how inexpensive, or how mislabelled...it's still a very attractive flower. The white and pink fading together is absolutely stunning. For the price, I would have bought enough for two whole strips of side garden bed. Enjoy this great little find! Next year I will be haunting Kmart and Loews in february.
* Posted on Thu, Jun 9, 05 It's a Lavender/Blueish looking shade of pink to my eye, so perhaps its either more or less "Blue" in its tone of color depending on soil, etc...and I do agree it is a lovely flower!....I notice that both of the Blue Lagoons pictured seem quite different in color, one being more pale...so I am sure there are some variations depending on growing conditions. I figure if my Blue Lagoons bloom as nicely, I am fortunate!...and as someone else mentioned before, if I want true "Blue", I'll need to find it in other kinds of flowers. The suspense of waiting for these "mystery" varieties to bloom sure is fun:)...Take care all!...GardenLove
