Here's an interesting case with Lois Choice divisions. I dug up my Lois Choice in 2022 because it was not blooming well. When I dug it up, the crown part was very fragile and quite spread out. Part of it was hollowed. Anyway I tried to preserve as whole a piece as I could. I spread it over the raised planting hole. It did not bloom last year. This year, I notice there seems to be two different types of peonies growing from the crown. The one circled with the orange color seems to be growing well and showing buds. The ones circled with the blue color is showing a different color foliage and very little buds. I can't wait to see what happens with this. I am thinking maybe the orange circled peony is not part of Lois Choice. It maybe a seedling. But I don't recall seeing a seedling there last year. Plus seedlings take at least 3-4 years to bloom so it can't just suddenly put up 4 stems with buds. I will be watching this to see what happens. It is really weird.

Very interesting, Karen. Please keep us updated.

Where did you get your original division?

I bought it from Brooks Garden in Fall 2017. It has not bloomed well for me since planted. It's tough one to grow successfully.

I think Lois' Choice is a hybrid? Do you think it could be a sport rather than a seedling? Very interesting, make sure to take lots of pics and share your observations Karen! This variety failed for me, tried it twice in CO, haven't replaced it in AL, probably far too wet for it here.

Liz, it does not grow well in the south. The plant grows well, the blooms never opened for me.

It will be very interesting to see what the buds from the orange circled stems produce. They definitely don't look like Lois Choice. I hope it is a more vigorous sport of Lois Choice and hopefully produce the same multicolored blooms.

Karen - it looks like the orange circled one might be planted slightly deeper and definitely seems to be younger/shorter growth because of depth or the fact that each stem has a flower bud. The blue circled one has mostly foliage without a bud so will be more vigorous and/or came up earlier or is planted more shallowly. I'm not a betting person but I would bet you still have Lois Choice

As far as this actually being LC, here are early pics of my LC from Don Hollingsworth years ago. It's growing in an area of heavy clay and now in quite a lot of shade (scheduled to be moved this year)



This is a slightly earlier pic (showing what fighting birds can do to fragile stems) )



Bottom line - I think you still have LC but do keep us updated.

Oh, Valerie! How to get rid of these birds?!

Don't think that's possible Anya - we have the ideal (and rural) garden for so many birds and critters. Sadly this is not the only peony that was devastated last year by the birds As far as LC goes though it will be moved to a sunnier/more open location this Fall so I think the birds will not bother it then

Thanks Val! I hope that you are right that both are Lois Choice. If they are, I would like to separate the crown and root of the orange circled one from the root and grow it separately. I like to plant it separately to see if this piece of crown proves to be a better bloomer than the blue circled part of the crown growth. Ever since i planted this peony, I never got more than 3 good blooms in any year.

I am so sorry that you have to deal with such destructive birds. I would be so upset to find such broken stems in my garden. Hope that they have moved on to some other places and away from your garden for this year.

Karen, that would be a good idea to separate that piece out this fall.

Valerie, I sympathize with the bird damage. We have wild turkeys here, and I do believe that the tomato cages I put around each of my peonies helps prevent them from stomping on them.

I also have seen some holes dug by armadillos in the garden beds, too! It is always a battle against critters in the garden.

Now why didn't I think of that I use tomato cages and assorted tall supports late Fall to deter the deer from running all through the beds all winter but didn't think of using them in Spring - thanks!

Update on my Lois Choice. Here's a pic that I take today. The clump still looks like 2 different peonies growing. The foliage still looks different. And all 4 stems have buds whereas the green leaves one has lesser buds. Maybe it's a seedling, and a vigorous one at that. Anyway, I am glad that dug up Lois Choice and replanted it. I am getting 3 buds on the stems of the green leaves one which I think is Lois Choice.

It's looking great, Karen. Thanks for the update!

How big are the buds. Karen? Looking forward to seeing the blooms, see if they're different! That reddish foliage is really pretty…

THanks, LG and Liz! I too am very curious what flowers the reddish foliage peony produces. The buds are getting big! It sure is a mystery.