Athena
This was my first Saunders herbaceous peony and is likely the most widely grown of all his introductions. It is another of the quadruple hybrids named for a Greek goddess – Athena is the goddess of wisdom and warfare and patroness of Athens. It wasn’t registered during Saunders’ lifetime.
‘Athena’ has strong stems and is a favorite cut flower and show peony as well as a good garden specimen.
| Cultivar: | Athena |
| Year: | 1955 |
| Seedling No: | 16245. Page 47 of Silvia Saunders’ Notebook |
| Parentage: | 28: lactiflora X (‘Otto Froebel’ X 5397) (5397 = mlokosewitschiii X macrophylla) |
| Flower: | Color: | ivory tinged pink with rosy flares; fades to white |
| Form: | single, cupped when first opening, 2 rows of petals | |
| Blooms: | Week 4 | |
| Carpels: | usually 3, light green, slightly woolly | |
| Stigmas: | dark rosy pink | |
| Disc: | white, edged pink, obscure | |
| Stamens: | filaments yellow, abundant stamens | |
| Plant: | Habit: | rounded bush, can flop |
| Foliage color: | medium green | |
| Foliage form: | medium sized leaves, not notched | |
| Height: | 31″ in 2022 | |
| Recommendation: | Highly recommended |
| Availability: | Most specialty nurseries |
