How to Store Peonies in the Fridge for up to TWO MONTHS

Peonies have a short and dramatic season, and nobody knows this better than a bride or florist who is planning a wedding around them. Here in our zone there is about a 2 week variance in when they bloom... sometimes the middle of May, sometimes not until Memorial Day.

If you want to have a peony filled wedding, we recommend setting the wedding date for AFTER peony season and then using this method to store peonies until the big day (up to two months). Optimal storage time is about a month, but I've had success keeping them for two months with this method.

Or perhaps you just want to be able to enjoy their season a bit longer, space out the peony glory a little.

Folklore has it that somebody's grandma always had a fresh peony bouquet at Thanksgiving, and her method was to wrap them in newspaper. We've tried that as well, and it works beautifully, but it didn't extend the life of the flowers beyond that of the paper towel method.

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[JulieCaprera]

One needs a fridge for daily/main food, one for bulk shopping food, one for drinks and now one for flowers! Peonies are so gorgeous and this is a neat way to keep them!

[boringbobtail]

Just unwrapped my peonies! Thanks to your tips I have spring again in August! ❤ty

[AlexAlex-gjjd]

I had no idea you could store peonies for at least a month! Thanks for the info! 🌸

[ckegarden]

Thanks for the very interesting presentation!
I'm always sad when peony season is over because they are on top of my 5 favorite flowers list,
(right above Lillies of the Valley, ) I can never get enough of their scent and unbeatable beauty.
So, I've been doing this for years. But I've found if you cut the peonies just when color has begun to show around the whole 'ball' I find this much better than waiting til they have opened as shown in the video. Although her method is works well, you will end up with more stems to store in the end so you can avoid the the marshmallow step.
Keeping the flowers in a tighter ball makes it much easier to prevent the ants who swarm the flowers before and after they open from taking a ride into places they don't belong. I just cut off the lower foliage and dump a bundle of the heads with foilage too, in a cool bucket of very clean water and then shake them off gently. Then I'll pat them gently with paper towels, stems too.. They don't need to be completely dry. I wrap them in damp, not soggy, newspaper or paper towels and place them either in a green bag or plastic bag. I've had them open beautifully after 4-5 weeks in the fridge. One thing to be very careful of is once peony stems are put in water with the temperature above 50* & sometimes warner, they can open fully within 2 hours. If they are in the 'ball' stage it will take 2+ days for them to fully open. Another great way to preserve the open flowers is to dry them. You can find the directions online.

[rachelj]

Your garden, hats and music makes me think of Jane Austen and old Elizabethan England. Or what I imagine it was like. So lovely.

[ambethk]

That giant vase of peonies in the background! Breathtaking!

[adunn]

The flowers behind you and the baskets on the wall🙌🏻💐 So lovely

[heatherannekennedy]

Gorgeous - this is so good to know! It seems like my peonies are just beginning to mature when our heaviest spring rain/wind storms hit. I'm always rushing to gather a few to enjoy before they are ruined!

[NaturallyBrittany]

I was pretty shocked with how long my peonies lasted in the fridge! I stored them with a little water in the bottom of a tall storage bucket and got about 3 weeks before I stopped using them at market. Virtually no loss! I am planning to use my leftovers to trial out a fun arbor / arch installation. :)

[melindarobb]

Yeah! Good to see a new vlog from you lovely ladies.

[boringbobtail]

Just wrapped another bunch per your teaching, hope they last till August again! 🤞😁

[sjwestmo]

Looks like i need to shop for more peony plants to try this 👍🏻

[oliviaspallinger]

Hi! I’m planning on doing this for an event. If I want the peonies to look their very best should I take them out of the fridge the morning of, day before, or another time?

[bethhubbs]

I loved the very end of your video when you two get together with your arms full of peonies! I clapped! :) Great video. Very helpful. I started my peonies only this year, so I've got a few more years to go before I have a bumper crop. I have to enjoy yours for now. :) Thanks for sharing! Beautiful video.

[zesuper]

Thank you so much Im going to try this for my wedding next month!!

[apoetsnote]

Thanks for sharing. How long after taking out of the fridge will they take to open? Thinking of giving for a gift in July and I have some ready for cutting

[mirlamurillo]

Yes, bring on more content. I love it. Ty you ladies.

[charlottecrawford]

Excellent-Thank you so much for the great visuals too-- im heading out to cut!

[annecanty]

Another lovely video full of beauty and knowledge.

[ginger]

We all just love your videos. Keep them coming girls. You do a wonderful job.