Peonies

What peony varieties do you stock?

It varies week to week, but our regulars include Sarah Bernhardt (the classic soft pink double — the bestselling peony variety in the world), Coral Charm (intense coral-pink that fades to peach as it opens), Duchesse de Nemours (pure white double, fragrant), Karl Rosenfield (deep crimson red), Festiva Maxima (white with red flecks), and Bowl of Beauty (single pink with creamy yellow centre). Our florists buy whatever's freshest and best-shaped each week, so the bouquets sometimes mix varieties.

Why are peonies a more premium flower than roses?

Three reasons. The season is short (8-10 weeks versus year-round roses), the plants take 3-5 years to produce harvestable blooms, and the flowers ship as tight buds that need cold-chain handling to open properly at the recipient end. You're getting one of the shortest-season, most-requested flowers in the world — booked early sells out the season every year.

How do I make peonies open?

Peonies ship as tight buds and open over 2-5 days at room temperature. Trim 2cm off each stem at a 45-degree angle when they arrive, place them in cool water (not iced — just tap-cold), and keep them out of direct sun and away from ripening fruit. To speed opening, hold each bud under warm running water and gently flex the petals apart with your fingers — it sounds destructive but it's the florist trick. Once open, peonies hold for 5-7 days.

How quickly can peonies be delivered in London?

Order by 6pm and Rushes will deliver your peonies the same day across every London postcode. Orders placed after 6pm are dispatched the next working day. There's no postcode lottery — the same flat delivery fee applies to every London address, whether that's a Zone 1 flat in Marylebone or a house in Twickenham. If you need a tighter window, choose the morning slot (9am – 12pm) at checkout. Next-day delivery is available to the rest of mainland UK with a 5pm cut-off the day before. Current delivery fees are shown at checkout and on the delivery page.

What sizes do peonies come in?

Most peonies come in three sizes — Regular, Large and Deluxe — so you can scale the gesture to the occasion. Regular is the everyday default (a generous hand-tied bouquet, the bestseller for most occasions). Large adds significantly more stems for milestone moments. Deluxe is the grand-gesture size, typically forty to fifty stems, used for big anniversaries, statement romance and major celebrations. Each size is shown on the product page along with stem counts and dimensions, so you can match the bouquet to the moment without guesswork.

Where in London do you deliver peonies?

Rushes covers every London postcode inside the M25 from a single working London workshop. That includes Central London (W1, WC1, EC1, SW1), the City and Canary Wharf, West London (Chiswick, Fulham, Ealing, Acton, Notting Hill), South West (Wimbledon, Putney, Battersea, Clapham, Richmond, Kingston), South East (Greenwich, Blackheath, Dulwich, Peckham), North London (Camden, Islington, Hampstead, Highgate, Finchley), North East and East London (Hackney, Dalston, Stratford, Walthamstow), plus the further-out postcodes (Wembley, Harrow, Barnet, Croydon, Bromley). There's a postcode checker on the gift-details page.

Can I add a card, vase or extras with my peonies?

Yes — every bouquet can be sent with a personalised hand-written gift card (up to 200 characters), a glass vase so the recipient doesn't have to find one, Belgian chocolates, a bottle of Champagne or Prosecco, or a foil balloon. All add-ons are picked at checkout and arrive with the bouquet — no separate parcel. The card is hand-written by the florist who builds the bouquet, not printed. If you're sending multiple bouquets to different addresses, each one gets its own card and delivery details.

Do you guarantee freshness?

Yes. Every Rushes bouquet is backed by our seven-day freshness guarantee — if anything wilts inside a week of arrival, send us a photo and we'll replace the bouquet free of charge, no argument and no small print. We can offer that because every bouquet is hand-tied to order on the day of delivery using stems sourced from our long-standing Dutch grower partners — nothing is pre-made and nothing sits in a fridge waiting for a buyer. Stems are graded for vase life before they leave the Netherlands.

Do you deliver on Sundays and bank holidays?

Yes. Sunday delivery is available across every London postcode if you place your order by 4pm on Sunday. Bank holiday delivery runs as normal except for Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day, when our workshop is closed. The three dates a year where we recommend booking ahead are Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, and the week before Christmas — same-day cut-offs get tight on these dates and rose supply can be stretched.

Why Rushes over a supermarket peony bouquet?

Supermarket bouquets are pre-made, sometimes days before they hit the shelf, and they sit in chilled cabinets until they sell. Rushes builds every bouquet by hand on the day of delivery, using stems from Dutch growers we've worked with for years. You get longer vase life (typically 7-10 days versus 3-5 for supermarket flowers), a proper hand-written card, a real florist's eye for what works together, and a seven-day freshness guarantee. We've been a working London florist since 2003.