Passion for Peonies: Celebrating the Culture and Conservation of Nichols Arboretum's Beloved Flower

There's no more breathtaking signal of summer's onset than the blooming of peonies. Stunningly beautiful and relatively easy to grow, peonies are a favorite flower everywhere they can be cultivated and for good reason: the heady fragrances and enchanting colors of a peony-rich display create an immersive experience that has enamored generations of garden lovers across the world. This passion is on full display each June at the historic Peony Garden of the University of Michigan's Nichols Arboretum.

Originally planted in 1922, the Nichols Arboretum Peony Garden now boasts North America's largest public collection of heirloom herbaceous peonies. The Peony Garden has become a sacred space for the Ann Arbor community, a not-to-be-missed sensation when it erupts each season, as the Ann Arbor Observer once wrote, in "a riot of color, of crimson, rose and shell pink intermingled with fluffy pompoms of creamy white." The rather short period of peak bloom--about two fleeting weeks each year--only seems to intensify the garden's appeal, drawing thousands of visitors annually to this spectacular "living museum" on campus that showcases upwards of 10,000 blossoms.

Richly illustrated with hundreds of striking color photos, Passion for Peonies collects short essays that celebrate the story of the Nichols Arboretum Peony Garden as well as the rich social history of peony gardening that it is an integral part of. Together these pieces comprise a love letter both to a magical public space at the University of Michigan and to the broader history and culture of peony gardening. The book will appeal to readers interested in the University of Michigan, the history of public gardens, and of course peonies!


Author: David Michener, Robert B. Grese
Publisher: University of Michigan Regional
Published: 04/21/2020
Pages: 168
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.40lbs
Size: 11.00h x 8.40w x 0.50d
ISBN: 9780472037803

About the Author
David Michener has curated the peony garden at the University of Michigan's Nichols Arboretum since 1990. He is co-author (with Carol A. Adelman) of Peony: The Best Varieties for Your Garden.

Robert Grese is Theodore Roosevelt Chair of Ecosystem Management in the School for Environment and Sustainability at the University of Michigan as well as Director of the Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum.


This title is only available via back order