TOPEKA (KSNT) – It’s peony season, and one local garden has all the history behind these beautiful flowers.
Ward-Meade Park’s garden has over 18 different types of peonies, all thanks to Myron Bigger. Bigger was a peony legend who started growing these flowers in 1922.
Bigger would grow them to sell during Memorial Day. At some point, he had over 75 different kinds of peonies. His family donated their collection in 2018 to Ward-Meade Park, which features many of his most famous peonies.
Ward-Meade Park also has the only Myron Bigger peony digger in the world
“We do have his most famous, which includes the Topeka coral, the capitol dome, as well as the Kansas variety,” said Recreation Leader at Ward-Meade Park Devin Cooper.
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“Perhaps the biggest one over there right now is the Anne Bigger, which is named after his wife, Anne,” Cooper said. “And there are others that are named after his relatives as well.”
Peony season lasts from May until early June. You can find some at Gage Park, the Ted Ensley Garden at Lake Shawnee, or at Ward-Meade Park’s garden.
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