Meet the Swensons

We are Keith and Becky Swenson, of Howard Lake, Minnesota, and we run Swenson Gardens. We grow peonies on our property in Delano and in Howard Lake and organically nurture, harvest, and sell them through the mail and over the internet. When our peonies are in ripest bloom, our children, Britta, 12, and Luke, 10, hand-pick the best blossoms and sell them at local farmers’ markets as cut flowers. The kids help with the weeding, planting, and washing the roots when it’s time for dividing. Becky handles all the day-to-day aspects of the business and Keith takes care of the mechanical responsibilities. Swenson Gardens peonies are grown with tender loving care. No Chemicals are used on our peonies. All plants are grown organically, just as God intended.

In 2007, we begin moving most of our peonies from Delano to our new farm in Howard Lake. It is a joy to expand our business across the 40 acres of rich black soil. Because of the additional field preparation required for our eco-friendly plants, we have postponed our garden tours until spring 2009. Please stop out and visit us next year. When the fields are in bloom, it truly is a breathtaking sight!

How Swenson Gardens Began

Years ago, we fell in love with the color, fragrance, and foliage of peonies, but grew discouraged by the limited varieties (usually “red,” “pink,” and “white”) available in garden stores. We painstakingly researched peony varieties, searching for those offering superior attributes. Color was important, but we also looked for plants with extended bloom times, stout stems, and crisp, clean foliage for landscaping appeal.

We found wondrous peonies that you’ll never find in a garden store!

Peonies with stems strong enough to hold up their own, heavy heads. Peonies in colors and shades you might expect of roses: corals, lavenders, marbles, russets, even yellow.

We brought these exotic peonies home and nurtured them in our fields. From other growers, you may be able to purchase test-tube grown, immature plants that take years to develop and bloom fully. But we committed ourselves to the old-fashioned, slower way of growing peonies because it gives you the highest quality roots. Each of our plants is a division of original, three-year-old, field-grown stock. This means you get a more developed plant - and impressive results in your garden faster.