hello peony people
i am a new member and obsessive gardener/grower in richmond, va (zone7)
I have about 20 established peonies, growing in partial shade, that have always bloomed surprizingly well considering how little light they got
until this spring, when blooms were few and small, even less foliage than usual
my question is - having been in the ground for 10+ years and receiving annual mulching, could they now be too deep? should i try and lift them?
we had a mild winter and a very wet spring, the only other change is that thanks to Isabelle, the plants get more light than they used to
any advice appreciated
bad year for established peonies
I'd say that was a possibility mcgina. I've never mulched mine, but if you do that every year, it would make sense that the peonies are deeper and deeper. I wouldn't lift them if it were me, I'd take a hoe and take some dirt/mulch off the top of them, maybe a couple inches or so. The light shouldn't be a problem at all, they love the sun.
I echo kathys999 thoughts on checking the depth of the peonies. It's real easy to do. Peonies do not like being moved, and it is not unusual for them to take 3 years to bloom again after being moved. I grow peonies here in central Alabama, and our challenge is to get the necessary chilling hours. If I get great blooms 2 out of 3 years, I consider it a success! Your mild winter may have an effect on them. Our very mild winter definitely had a negative effect on the quantity of blooms we had this year. They are worth waiting on.
thanks for the advice, i scratched around this am and found growth tips very close to surface so now am wondering if they're not deep enuf. i'd always heard 1-1/2", do you agree?
thanks gina
Well heres the problem. if that root is 5 inches under or 2 inches under.. your going to run into growth when you dig. what I'd do is dig out AROUND them, trying to see exactly how far down that root is. If its anything lower than 2 inches, then I'd wait until they were fully died back and dig the dirt off the top of them, perhaps cutting the shoots off with pruning shears.
This message was edited Oct 13, 2005 10:31 AM