In severe climates where many other perennials are short-lived, these hardy plants thrive. They require only a minimum of care after they have become established. Once a gardener plants a peony, he is finished with that task for the rest of his life.
The very same clumps will come back year after year to display their majestic beauty and fragrance. Could anyone ask for more?
Plant peonies in the fall when the roots go dormant and growth is at a standstill. September is considered the best time in the northern sections of the country, October in the central parts, and November in the southern sections.
Peonies will not do well in the deep South as they need a cold period to induce and hold their dormancy.
The Right Place
Where should peonies be planted? In full sun for the best flowers, and preferably away from trees and large shrubs whose roots are sure to rob the peonies of needed water and nutrients.
Use peonies for attractive foundation plantings to add variety to the perennial border, or to form a backdrop for annual flowers.
They make fine mass plantings in front of shrubs, or flanking a wall or driveway. No matter where they are planted, they provide an informal appearance that is always pleasing.
Way of Planting Peonies
The way of planting peonies is important because they are so permanent in the landscape picture. They will thrive in any reasonably rich soil that has good drainage and a pH in the neighborhood of 6.
If the soil is sandy, improve it by adding generous amounts of organic matter such as leaf mold, compost, peat moss, or a combination of the three. Old stable manure is excellent as long as it doesn’t touch the roots.
To lighten heavy clay soil, add sand along with the organic materials. I have never used any commercial fertilizer except rock phosphate and bone meal on peonies. As bone meal is slow-acting and non-burning, it may be used generously in the planting site for peonies.
Dig the holes 18 inches across and as deep as. Discard the subsoil and replace it with a mixture of topsoil and organic matter. A few shovels of coarse gravel in the bottom of the holes will help ensure proper drainage.
Mound up a cone of topsoil on which to seat the root, and plant so the “eyes” (pink buds) are no deeper than two inches after the soil is tamped. It is a good plan to prepare the sites about two weeks before planting so the ground is settled and the roots cannot sink.
Water the plantings thoroughly and cover the surface with a light leaf mulch after the ground freezes in late fall, to guard against heaving.
In the spring remove this mulch after the ground thaws but do not work the soil until the rosy shoots appear or you may break them off. The buds are already formed in the tips of these shoots. If you damage the tips, you will get no bloom that season.
Peonies need no additional fertilizer for several years if planted this way. But if you must feed them, spread a circle of old stable manure around the base of each plant, being careful not to get it in the crowns.
If manure is not available, any garden fertilizer low in nitrogen (the first number in the formula on the bag) may be used.
Herbaceous peonies fail into five distinct flower types:
1. The single peony which has five or more petals around a center or cluster of pollen-bearing stamens and carpels
44659 by Eva M. Schroeder