For those of you who have peony roots with eyes on several different levels - maybe as much as 3 inches - do you plant them so that the highest eyes are covered with an inch or so of soil (I am in zone 9a), and end up with eyes that are too deep, or should they be planted with the lowest eyes an inch deep, which would leave some of the higher eyes exposed? And no, twisting and turning them will not get all the eyes on one plane.......
planting peonies with varying levels of eyes
I would place the upper eyes at or just above the surface covering with just a sprinkling of soil. The plant like most things will adjust to it's place and be fine. I do like to cover lightly the eyes the first year. I use barely enough to cover the eye. During the winter this will settle/wash away and is only temporary cover to get the plant established.
On some of the lactiflora's you will find that the eyes that are above the surface will develop a woody layer surrounding the growth which looks similar to a tree peony stem. This is entirely normal.
I even do that in zone 6a. I got tired of waiting three years for a blossom. while the plant adjusted. The only qualification here is that they have to be covered with very light mulch after it freezes, removed as soon as temps rise again in the spring. Although it's always said to prevent frost heaves, there is another reason that might apply in every zone---critters do dig them up given the chance. I don't know what the critters are, maybe my dog, maybe hungry rhodents, but it deserves watching and covering, at least until the ground firms up. Also some significant others don't watch where they're walking, another reason to mark the spot clearly. I've seen your posted pics of peonies, Soils. They're beautiful!
Help. I am cutting down my garden for the winter including my peonies. Two of the itoh (intersectional) peonies are sening up pips. Julia Rose is actually showing pips at the base of some of this summers stems. I have never seen this. I threw a little dirt on Cora Louise and then saw that Julia Rose was even 'worse'. I am assuming these are next years flowers. Should I just cover them with an inch or two of dirt. Otherwise they will freeze. Right?
I'd love an answer to this question. MOST of mine are showing pips.
Same here. There are lots of pips on old and new plants, so I'm lightly covering as many as I can. I planted Avalanche a few weeks ago, and now it's an 8" tall plant. Unless there's advice on this, I'm letting them grow until they freeze.
All of mine, including herbaceous, tree (the new one I got this fall), and itoh are sending pips. I have lightly covered with dirt like Rosemary. We are having a nice fall but seems like we have had nice falls before and not had this happen. Hmmm, will check the ones out front to see if they are also sending pips.
The pips on the stems is a throwback to the tree parent. Here I have never gotten one on the intersectional's I have to grow next year. However in some areas I have seen comments that they will send up growth next year.
Tree peonies actually form next years growth buds after they bloom, at least here. Hopefully cold weather willl set in before they break dormancy. Some tree peonies have the ability to flower twice if they have lutea in their backgrounds. If you do a search for winter blooming peonies you can find several. My growing conditions are not such that I have had one bloom. However since most are darker colored ones I plant in the shade. In Japan and China small huts are erected around the buds generally with one side open to see the bloom.
Several of the lactiflora's will develop woody stem like growths around buds. What I have seen in fields it is a protective device to protect the buds from sun as most I have looked at the bud had been above ground level.
I moved one of the herbaceous that I bought from Adelman 's. I had planted a bunch out back and then dug two holes out front waiting for two peonies that never showed up. I was going to fill in the holes when my husband suggested that I move one from the back to the front. So I dug up the one that would get the least sun, Sword Dance. It has three huge pips on it, and only the thick root about the size of a fat carrot maybe 6-8" long. So the buds are living off the root. It will get better sun in it's new spot and space out the peonies I have much better. Even two plants that I gave a neighbor who gave them back this summer have pips on them. She has no direct sun until way late in the afternoon, so they grew but not very well, and no flowers. I stuck them in a spot just to keep them alive until I can figure out what to do with them. Seeing all those pips makes me antsy to see peonies growing, just like in spring. I think they are just teasing.. lol
It's just very strange to see pips now. Some of mine have six or seven. They look great, and if it were April, I'd be ecstatic.
This message was edited Oct 24, 2011 4:17 PM
Since this year seems strange I would suggest a early January walk, coffee or other beverage in hand, to see just what appears to be emerging. Some of the brightest blue and lavender flowers are emerging about that time but are microscopic but in mass it appears someone has sprayed paint for all to enjoy.
Early January, huh?? It would have to be in Snowshoes and a parka here. lol.
Some years it has been in snow shoes but except for a few years like last year our snows are generally 2-6 inches at a time. Even in last years snow there were places next to bushes and windblown area's that can give you the lift that I at least need.
For what ever it is worth I have not seen many of the resident geese in the last couple of weeks but heard a few going over very low. I need to go see the birds at some of the local flyway stops.
Now that you mention it I have only seen one or two flocks of the Canadian honkers going overhead. Maybe they are as confused as the peonies. :)
I was just looking through some pictures I took over the last month. I thought this was awfully pretty of a frost limed peony bush
the peonies are up the path somewhat behind the larch
Beautiful! Love your walkway. What do you have growing around the stepping stones?
It's Wooly Thyme. It is also referred to as a 'stepable' meaning you can walk on it and it is just fine. Springs back up. It was early in the morning so it is covered in frost making it look white or silver. I have creeping thyme, lemon thyme, creeping phlox, a low creeping dianthus along the edges of the path on the garden side. The path is lined with heavy metal pieces about 5" wide so it goes down into the dirt. The path was originally filled with pea gravel between the stones and the rim of metal kept the gravel and dirt seperate. But while gardening I always got dirt and bark into it so it didn't look good. I dug the path up, removed the pea gravel and filled in with dirt I wanted to plant stuff that would grow over and hide it. The dirt that is left between stones down the middle has moss growing on it. I just take scissors out there and give it all a 'haircut' every so often as it starts running over each other. Since the flowers come at different times and are white, pink, deep rose, purple there is always some tiny flowers on the low creeping stuff.
This message was edited Oct 31, 2011 6:02 PM
It's quite stunning.
I guess what I like about it is that it is interesting clear up until it all disappears under the snow.
I was wondering, how much sun can Peonies take? Mine are from the original owners and are on the north side of the house. I want to move them now but am not sure where would be a better place.
Here's some information on it:
http://www.theplantexpert.com/peonies/PlantingPeonies.html
If they are dark red the flowers will last longer where they are not in direct sun.
I don't know where the plant expert is giving directions for but putting a layer of sand below a layer of compost then planting above would be a disaster in this area. The first thing that pops to mind is that the layer of compost should continue to compost lowering the plant even further. Second thing and you will start seeing this in planting instructions for peonies and should be for all plants. Do not just unpot and plant at the depth in the pot. Many plants are just shoved into the pot at what ever looks good to the potter. Better is to unpot and remove some of the soil to see exactly where the eyes are. Some peonies, others also, will have been in the pots too long causing the roots to circle in the pot. If allowed to do this the roots will strangle each other.
One complaint and something I will watch for this year on other plants especially woodies, is that the original plug was of perlite or other volcanics. For some reason the roots on some of the plants do the stangling in the plug. Only a few roots escape making it appear that the plant is healthy. I just teased the roots out as normal but did not completely remove the potting medium. After they died and I dug up I found that most had a very tight ball of roots in the volcanic medium. This strangled and cut of nurishment from the few roots that had escaped. I also found this in locally grown tomatoes and peppers.
I just dig the home 2' deep and round, (put gravel for about an inch in the back yard where it is wetter), back fill with loosened soil, then plant the tuber (peony). the oldest I have sit in water and ice for a bit in the spring, but they grow huge flowers and even larger plants. So I go with what works in my yard.
Great article, Pirl.
Thanks, Donna. It's always a sacrifice with peonies - have more blooms with sun but they'll be gone sooner or have fewer in shade that last longer. Then there's the rain that always seems to happen when they're at their best and it doesn't perform magic with them.
You are so right pirl, it never fails when they bloom the down pours of rain come and beat those blooms down.
The ones I was thinking of moving are white, They always seem to get such long stems ( much taller then the foliage) and the blooms fall over to the ground. Since they are white could they with stand more sun , not full, but more. I did notice that the red ones wilted much faster than the whites since i have them planted where they get more sun in that bed.
Would a tomato cage work better for your white ones, Marie? Maybe it would prevent them from getting dirty faces.
I don't have red but do have pink and a newer one that's yellow. They both bloomed without a rain making a mess of them.
I put cages around them pirl, but the flower stems grow way above them and still flop over. That is why I was wondering if they needed more direct sun now that everything has grown up so much since they were first put in.
Aha! You could always dig some of that peony up and transplant it to a sunny spot to see how tall it gets and if it would bloom better for you.
I think that is what I will do. It has spread to far in that one area anyway.
marie_kap take a look thru the sticky in this forum about peony and supports and you will find some suggestions for supporting those tall blooms.