Pageant

‘Pageant’ cannot be easily confused with any other Saunders peony.  It blooms very early and the flowers have a very large boss of stamens (Silvia Saunders calls this a “large heart”).  The guard petals do not cover the stamens and they can easily be spoiled by a late frost or rain.

The petal color is a slightly blue-toned pink, causing H. F. du Pont to vanquish it to the cutting garden from the display gardens at Winterthur where he felt its coloration did not match the nearby azaleas.