Caring for Peonies: 10 Tips and Tricks for Success!

One of the most magnificent garden mainstays is the common herbaceous peony (Paeonia lactiflora). See reasons why peonies should be in your garden, plus 10 tips on planting and caring for these beauties. (Don’t forget to support their heads!)

6 Reasons Why Peonies Should Be in Your Garden

1. Peony plants are so long-lived that it is commonly said that peonies will outlive the gardeners who plant them! Note: They will not bloom in their first year, but once established, peonies may bloom for 100 years or more with little or no attention.
2. Peonies also thrive almost anywhere in the country. Many varieties can even survive a Zone 2 winter (that’s a low of -50°F). 
3. Even when not in bloom, their dark green, glossy foliage and shrub-like appearance make them handsome focal points in the garden.
4. Peony plants are virtually pest-free—deer and rabbits don’t like their bitter taste.
5. Showy and fragrant, peonies will also make excellent cut flowers! 
6. While September is the best time to plant bare-root peonies (since they are dormant in the fall), container-grown peonies can be planted almost any time. If you are looking longingly at your neighbor’s peonies and wishing you had some right now, go for it!

Many nurseries offer early, midseason, and late blooming varieties, making it possible for you to stretch out the peony season over many weeks. There are 6 flower types to choose from anemone, single, Japanese, semi-double, double, and bomb. The colors range from pristine white to pink, peach, yellow, magenta, deep reds, and even bi-colors.

Fragrances vary as well—some plants, such as ‘Festiva Maxima’ and ‘Duchesse de Nemours’, have intoxicating, rose-like scents, while others are lemony or have no scent at all. If fragrance is important to you, give them the sniff test before you buy.

5 Tips for Planting Peonies Properly

1. In choosing a spot for your new peony to grow, make sure it will get lots of light—6 to 8 hours of full sun is best for producing a profusion of flowers but it will still perform well in a location with morning sun and light afternoon shade. Peonies will not bloom in the shade.
2. Peony plants need well-draining, neutral soil away from competing tree roots. This plant will grow to cover an area about 3 feet in diameter (and stand 3 feet tall), so give it plenty of room and don’t crowd it! Once planted, it can remain undisturbed for many years as long as it is flowering well.
3. Planting depth is critical; if a peony is planted too deeply, it won’t bloom. When planting a container-grown peony, cover it no deeper than it grew in the pot.
4. Try not to disturb the rootball or damage the feeder roots. A newly planted peony can take up to 3 years to reach its full flowering potential, but once established, this plant likes to be left alone.
5. Be patient. Note that peonies do not flower in their first year of planting, and it may take two to three years for the plant to bloom profusely. Once mature, a plant in the sun can produce as many as 50 flowers each year for a lifetime of beautiful blooms.

See our Peony Planting Guide for more information!

How to Support Peonies

Peonies need support while growing due to their heavy flowers and brittle stems, especially the larger flowering varieties. Peony rings were invented for just this purpose, or you can use a wire tomato cage. Placing the support around the plants early in spring is ideal so you don’t accidentally pierce the crown.

Many newer hybrids are being developed with stronger stems to eliminate this problem, and single, anemone, or semi-double flowering varieties usually don’t need staking.

The plant will grow up through the support and eventually hide the wire.

5 Tips on Caring for Peonies

1. Deadhead peonies after they finish flowering. The petals will brown, which isn’t attractive. Cut the stem underneath the old bloom, leaving the foliage alone.
2. Wait until the fall to cut back the foliage to discourage overwintering pests.
3. Mulch new plants with evergreen boughs or salt marsh hay after the ground freezes. 
4. The only serious problem peonies ever get is “botyrtis,” a fungal disease can be avoided with good air circulation around the plant. Signs of botrytis are blackened buds and stems. Cut off and dispose of any affected areas (in the trash, not in your compost pile). If you plant properly and avoid crowding, you shouldn’t have this problem.
5. Peonies can be susceptible to powdery mildew in late summer, but do not worry. The white, powdery mildew fungus may not be pretty, but it seems harmless. Better air circulation can avoid mildew.

If you share my passion for peonies, get out there and enjoy them! Pick lots of bouquets to perfume the house! Like all good things, peony blossoms won’t last forever, and you don’t want to miss a minute!

For more information, see the Almanac’s Peony Growing Guide.