Pink in May

A Little Note

The Photo:

One of two peonies in my front yard.

The Thought:

Last year, no peonies bloomed, so this year, two have graced our front yard, and I am so delighted. Even before they open, peonies provide nectar outside of the bud and below the flower where bees and ants feast, keeping bad insects away.

Larger bees then enjoy foraging through the sometimes hundreds of petals for more nectar stored in the peony’s ovaries.

Perhaps my peonies are growing because of the deep cold spell we had this winter. Apparently, peonies need a cold winter to go into dormancy and set the buds before spring.

That may mean less peonies because our average temperature in our area has risen 5° F since 2012, according to the records by US Department of Agriculture’s new map:

The US Department of Agriculture has just updated the hardiness zone maps to include the shifting changes due to climate change. [See resources below]

Can you image the world with no peonies? What else will we lose?

Resources

Alaska Peony Cooperative: Honeybees and Peonies
Gardenia: Peonies and Pollinators – A Dance
The Spruce: Plant Peonies
The Spruce: Peonies Trending in 2024
American Peony Society: Anatomy of Peony [pdf]
Almanac: Peonies
NPR: USDA Updates Key Map
USDA: Plant Hardiness
USDA Plant Hardiness WA State Map
Wikipedia: Peony

Poetry

Pink in May

delicate pink petals scoop sunshine,
opening to delicate yellow-orange anthers
and deep pink stigma and filament:
accessories to its glamorous beauty
filled inside while open
and outside on its bud
with sticky nectar feast for bees:
a busy little ecosystem
barely seen by us
in a pink world in May.

Sheri Edwards
05.20.24 141.365.24
Poetry/Photography