A field full of flowers

At Golden Light Gardens, Shelby Pappalardo is patiently waiting for her roughly 500 peony plants to come into bloom.

Once the bloom season begins, Golden Light Gardens will open to the public, inviting guests to stroll through the fields, cut their own flowers to create their own custom bouquets or bring a picnic to relax and enjoy the gardens.

“People can just come out, they get a pair of clippers, and they can walk through the gardens at their own pace and take home some really beautiful flowers,” Pappalardo said.

Once they’ve bloomed, peony season lasts about a month. When the peonies are expected to bloom, though, Pappalardo said is still up in the air.

“Last year our first day we were open was June 6,” Pappalardo said. “It really is weather dependent right now. It’s been kind of cold, so we’re still hoping for the first week of June, but it can totally depend. If it were to warm up real quick here, it might be sooner or it might be a little bit later yet.”

When it comes to peonies, Pappalardo said patience is key.

“It’s just a lot of patience with them,” she said. “You buy the roots and plant them, and then they usually take a couple years to start producing flowers. We actually planted these roots in the fall of 2023, and then last summer, 2025, was when we were able to open for the first time to the public. It’s a lot of patience and waiting, but the outcome is just so gorgeous.”

Despite the patience required to see those first flowers, Pappalardo said peonies are a fairly low-maintenance plant.

“Once they’re established, they’re a pretty easy plant,” she said. “There’s different fungi and things they can get, but we cut them back in the fall and then their roots just stay dormant over winter and they start to spring up again come spring. It’s just weeding and we give them a little feed to help them grow in the fall, and that’s about it.”

Inspiration for Golden Light Gardens came from a visit Pappalardo and her mom took to another peony farm.

“[My mom] jumps on an idea and runs with it, so we visited another peony farm and she said, ‘This would be so cool to do,’ and it just took off from there,” Pappalardo said.

“I’ve always loved peonies and it was my grandma’s favorite flower,” Pappalardo said. “I think they’re just a really special flower because they’re so short-lived and people really seek them out.”

This year, Pappalardo expects to see her best display of peonies yet.
“I think this year it’s really going to be showstopping,” Pappalardo said. “This is the third year and peonies really do their best for producing flowers in the third year. Last year was amazing to see all the flowers. This year I think it’s just going to be overwhelming with flowers, so I’m really excited for a field full of flowers.”

And Pappalardo hopes Golden Light Gardens will continue for years to come.

“Now that they’re established and growing, I think we’re just going to keep at it for as long as possible,” she said. “The land that we’re planted on is my great-grandparents’ land. So I would be the fifth-generation farmer on the land and I’ll hopefully pass it on to my son one day.”

To stay up to date and find out when the bloom has begun, follow along on Golden Light Gardens’ Facebook page.