Flowers That Look Good With Peonies

Peonies are large perennial flowers that grow on a shrub-like bush. They produce wide bushy flowers that can grow in a variety of colors such as black, coral, yellow, lavender, purple, blush, scarlet, white, cream and red. Fresh-cut peonies look great by themselves in a simple glass or porcelain vase for a wedding or garden party. Peonies, however, are a very versatile flower and their wide range of colors allow them to pair nicely with a selection of other flowers in a vase or in a flower bed.

One of the challenges of selecting flowers to go with peonies is that peonies are such big, bold flowers they can easily overwhelm and overshadow smaller, more delicate flowers. Thus, cut sunflowers pair well with peonies because they can easily match the peonies in size and their bright yellow color gives you a variety of pairing options. For example, you can pair the sunflowers with yellow peonies for a more complementary look. On the other hand, you can pair the sunflowers with crimson of fuchsia peonies for a daring, contrast.

The vivid colors that violets possess make them a natural match for peonies. However, when arranging them with peonies in a bouquet or other arrangement, you need to be careful to make sure the violets have space and aren't crushed or overwhelmed by the petals of the peonies. The small purple splashes of color that violets provide break up the monotony of a single-color bouquet of peonies. For example, violets look good dotted in between yellow, crimson, fuchsia, cream or light purple peonies. Don't use violets with peonies that are the exact same shade of purple.

Orange daisies are a fitting choice to contrast with peonies because they're just the right size and they come in a color that peonies don't come in, making them a natural contrastive flower. For example, orange daisies can create a citrus-colored bouquet when paired with yellow, cream or white peonies. On the other hand, orange daisies create a bold-looking bunch when you combine them with red, dark pink or purple peonies, creating a truly vivid color scheme. Unlike violets, orange daisies are just large enough that you don't have to worry about the peonies overshadowing them easily in the bouquet.

Like peonies, Siberian irises are perennial flowers that you plant in the autumn. They make a suitable neighbor for peonies in the flowerbed not only because they favor the same growing conditions and full sun that peonies require, but they provide a harmonious contrast in color and shape. For example, Siberian irises grow nearly as tall as peonies do, around 2 to 3 feet, but with skinny, reed-like stems, as opposed to the more bushy stems of peonies. The dark violet color of Siberian irises also contrasts strikingly with pink, white, cream or light pink peonies.