Brtini Siekaniec’s peony painting is part of an exhibit opening Friday, July 2, 2021, at Grace Ridge Brewing in Homer, Alaska. It also will be on the label for Grace Ridge’s Imperial White beer made especially for the 2021 Homer Peony Festival.(Photo provided)

Brtini Siekaniec’s peony painting is part of an exhibit opening Friday, July 2, 2021, at Grace Ridge Brewing in Homer, Alaska. It also will be on the label for Grace Ridge’s Imperial White beer made especially for the 2021 Homer Peony Festival.(Photo provided)

‘City of Peonies’ celebrates 2nd annual peony festival

The Homer Chamber of Commerce is hosting the second annual Homer Peony Celebration July 9-24.

The Homer Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center is hosting the second annual Homer Peony Celebration from July 9-24, featuring peony farm tours, art classes, gallery exhibitions, workshops and self-guided tours.

Coined “The City of Peonies” in 2017, Homer offers optimum growing conditions for peonies to blossom, Jan Knutson, visitor center director, said.

“We have over 24 peonies farms around the Homer area. Our long Alaskan summer days of 22 hours of daylight, along with cool soils and glacier breezes provide ideal growing condition to produced larger than usual flowers and saturated colors,” Knutson said. “Maturing at a time when fresh cut peonies are not available anywhere else in the world, the area peonies are shipped to the Lower 48 states and around the world, especially Japan.”

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

Three peony farmers — Alaska Perfect Peonies, Joslyn Peonies and Scenic Place Peonies — and the Alaska Beauty Peony Cooperative are hosting guided peony farm tours and workshops on-site. Self-guided peony tours are also available in downtown Homer along Pioneer Avenue, with peony gardens marked with the official “Homer City of Peonies” signs.

The Homer Council on the Arts is offering six peony classes, including Plein Air Painting with artist David Pettibones, and pressed peony luminaries crafting with artist Sharlene Cline. The Pratt Museum and Park is hosting a family fun day. The festival will wrap up with the Ritz Garden Party Peonies and Patsy Cline event.

In addition to the tours and art workshops, the peony celebration will also include the sale of peony bouquets. The Homer-Kachemak Bay Rotary Club has partnered with the Alaska Beauty Peony Co-op to sell bouquets of peonies for $20, beginning Friday, July 9 at the Homer Chamber of Commerce. The peonies will be sold from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 9-10, 15-17 and 22-24. Proceeds will go to the rotary club and the peony growers.

The official peony celebration bags by NOMAR are sold at the Homer Chamber of Commerce, Art Shop Gallery, Bunnell Arts, Diamond Ridge Art Gallery, as well as the Alaska Beauty Peony Co-op.

“A special thank you to the major sponsors of the celebration: Joslyn Peonies, Alaska Farm Bureau, Horizon Satellite and Berkshire Hathaway Home Service Alaska Realty and 20-plus other local chamber member businesses and individuals who provided financial sponsorships and in-kind services,” Knutson said.

Registration is available through participating Homer peony farms, nonprofits and businesses sponsoring the events or at the Homer Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center.

For more information or to view the full schedule events, visit www.homeralaska.org/homer-peony-celebration/ or call the chamber of commerce at 907-235-7740.

Reach Sarah Knapp at sarah.knapp@homernews.com.

More in News

Volunteers repair the trails at Erik Hansen Scout Park in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Volunteers revitalize Kenai scout park

Kenai’s Erik Hansen Scout Park overlooks the mouth of the Kenai River in Old Town.

Traffic passes by South Spruce Street in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Planning commission withholds support for Spruce Street name change

A city council proposal would change the name to Kenai Beach Street.

Council member Jordan Chilson speaks during a Soldotna City Council work session on the Soldotna Field House in Soldotna, Alaska, on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Soldotna council rejects effort to change meeting times

A resolution calling for meetings to bumped up from 6 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Swimmers and parents protest the proposed closure of Kenai Peninsula Borough School District pools outside of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Administration Building in Soldotna, Alaska, on Thursday, June 26, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Pool funding OK’d as district looks to hand off facilities to communities

School pools have repeatedly been raised as a possible option for closure and then saved at the last minute.

The Cowles Council Chambers are seen in Homer City Hall on Pioneer Avenue in April 2025 in Homer, Alaska. (Homer News file photo)
Homer mayor recognizes Parks and Recreation Month, ADA Awareness Day

Parks and recreation areas are fundamental to the environmental well-being of the community, the proclamation said.

Seal pup PV2511 poses for a photograph on June 14, 2025 at the Alaska Sealife Center in Seward, Alaska. She was rescued by the site of a "popular fishing spot" in Homer on June 12, 2025. (Photo courtesy of ASLC)
SeaLife Center urges public to leave seal pups alone, after a recent uptick in admits

If you see a hurt or disabled pup, call the Stranded Marine Animal Hotline at 1-888-774-SEAL (7325).

Aspen Creek Senior Living residents, dressed as the Statue of Liberty and Uncle Sam, roll down the Kenai Spur Highway in Kenai, Alaska, during the Fourth of July Parade on Thursday, July 4, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai to celebrate Independence Day with annual parade

The Kenai Fourth of July parade is set to start at 11 a.m. on Trading Bay Road.

Most Read