Lemon Chiffon Peony Is the Summer Bloom of Our Dreams

There’s a peony that’s been charming our gardens, and in the summer months, it has lush yellow blooms on beautiful deep green leaves. It’s Paeonia ‘Lemon Chiffon,’ a.k.a. Lemon Chiffon peony. Now an all-time favorite planting, it's distinctive thanks to its pale yellow flowers and attractive foliage. This combination is the reason gardeners have, for years, counted on Lemon Chiffon peonies to add a dose of cheer to their gardens.

Lemon Chiffon was named the American Peony Society’s Best in Show and took home the Grand Champion prize in 2000. It was hybridized years earlier by D.L. Reath and first entered the garden scene in 1981. Lemon Chiffon was the result of Reath crossing ‘Salmon Dream’ and Reath No. F-3, which crossed ‘Cream Delight’ and ‘Moonrise.’ Lemon Chiffon blooms as a semi-double flower form and produces striking lemon yellow blooms, hence the name. It is a long-lived planting, and mature plants have also been known to produce double flower forms.

This peony has become a favorite not only because of its blooms, but also because of how hardy and weather-resistant it is in the garden. A relatively low-maintenance planting, Lemon Chiffon peony thrives in full sun or partial shade and grows best in Zones 3-8. This herbaceous peony is a mid-season bloom that flowers in late spring and early summer, usually around June. It grows to 32 inches in height and 24 to 36 inches in width. As with many peonies, Lemon Chiffon requires a deep plot of well-drained soil. It’s also resistant to deer, so if you have garden visitors that tend to browse your blooms, this is a good flower to plant.

These yellow blooms are beautiful in the garden and make gorgeous cut flowers too. After the blooming period, they leave behind profuse deep green foliage, which looks beautiful long past the flowering season. Don’t you want to add Lemon Chiffon blooms to your garden this year?

What’s your favorite spring-blooming flower? Do you have peonies planted in your garden this year?