The Lins Peonies

Eugene H. Lins

Eugene Lins was a native of Cologne, Minnesota, and started growing peonies as a hobby on his farm at the edge of town in the 1920s. This hobby took off and soon Mr. Lins began hybridizing and propagating those peonies. He named several of them after his wife and daughters: Mary, Mandeleen, Marcella, Ramona, Rosemarie, and Dolorodell (Dolores??). By the 1960s he had created 39 varieties, many of which won state and national awards, and he shipped them all over the world. Mr. Lins gained international fame for his world-class peonies. In fact, Lins Peonies can still be found in Europe, Australia, and other countries. they are also displayed at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. And, of course, Lins Peonies can be found all across the little unassuming town of Cologne, Minnesota where they all started. (I'm pretty sure my neighbors have a whole row of them!)

When Mr. Lins passed away in 1967, his family sold seven acres of his estate to the Cologne Lions Club to be developed into a park. Over the years Cologne Lions Park added a pavilion, picnic area, baseball field, and a playground. In 2009 a new feature was added: The Lins Peony Garden.

It was hard to find more information about Mr. Lins or who originated the idea of this project, but I'm pretty sure his family wanted to commemorate his work. His son, Gene, spent 35 years tracking down, propagating and preserving his father's peonies. To date he's donated 27 varieties to the garden. One of Mr. Lins's granddaughters made a piece of art depicting each of his peonies. The goal of The Lins Peony Garden is to cultivate and display them for public enjoyment, to preserve a piece of little-known Cologne notoriety, and, perhaps most importantly, to return each of Eugene Lins's 39 peonies to his property.

Below are photos of the Lins Peonies. I've organized them alphabetically according to bloom time. The (date) is the year that particular variety was propagated. Enjoy!

Early Season Bloomers

Blue Rose (1957)

Confetti (1965)

Festival Queen (1954)

Gardenia (1949)

King Midas (1942)

Lilac Time (1958)

Mary L (1949)
named after Eugene's wife

Mercedes (1956)

Old Lace (1945)

Valencia (1941)

Mid-Season Bloomers

Casablanca (1942)

Dolorodell (1942)
named after Eugene's daughter

Ensign Moriarty (1945)

Gold Crest (1963)

Hawaiian Sunset (1958)

Mandaleen (1942)
named after Eugene's daughter

Marcella (1952)
named after Eugene's daughter

Mary L. (1949)
named after Eugene's wife

Ramona Lins (1942)
named after Eugene's daughter

Waikiki (1959)

Weatherball 90 (1962)

Late Season Bloomers
(Between strong storms and life becoming crazy I missed the late bloomers. Sorry! :( There's always next year!)