Peony is a classic garden perennial with many gorgeous colors and forms.
With proper care, its lovely blooms will return to your landscape each spring.
There are many types of peonies, each with unique growth habits, flower shapes, and colors.
Credit: Blaine Moats
Where to Plant Peony
Spring-blooming peonies are wonderful specimen plants.
Plant your peony inwell-draining soilandfull sunwhere it will receive at least six hours of direct sunlight daily.
double-check the spot you choose allows the plant to have undisturbed roots.
Credit: Blaine Moats
Either starter should beplanted in the fall, a few weeks before the first frost.
If youneed to move an established plant, fall is the best time to do so as well.
Spring-planted peony plants usually lag a year behind fall-planted peonies.
Pollinated peony flowers form fuzzy seed pods.Credit: Blaine Moats
Set the plant in the hole at the same depth as it sat in the container.
A sure way for a peony to lack blooms is to plant it too deeply.
When planting multiple peonies, space them 3 to 4 feet apart to allow plenty of room to grow.
Credit: Greg Scheidemann
Water the garden bed after planting.
Dig a shallow hole and position the bare-root tuber.
Cover it with soil, pressing down to remove air pockets, then water.
Credit: Andreas Trauttmansdorff
Light
Peony plants thrive in full sun but will tolerate partial shade.
Full sun ensures the perennial has lush blooms and healthy foliage.
The plant dislikes having its roots disturbed and can protest by withholding blooms.
Credit: Richard Felber
Give plants enough water to soak into the top 5 inches of soil.
Continue towater your plantseven after the flowers have faded so the leaves remain healthy.
The perennial grows best in average humidity.
Credit: Clint Farlinger
Avoid nitrogen-heavy (N) fertilizers.
These promote good foliage growth but discourage strong blooms.
Herbaceous peony plants can be cut to the ground afterfall frosthas killed off the foliage.
Credit: Denny Schrock
In the spring, new growth will appear from the roots.
Tree peonies should bepruned in late spring.
Remove any damaged wood, and make your cuts at an angle directly above outward-facing buds.
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
Pests and Problems
You may see lots of ants on peonies.
Don’t fret; they won’t harm your plant.
Just ignore them, and they’ll eventually leave to feed elsewhere.
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
You should inspect your plants for signs ofcommon peony diseases, though.
Remove as much of the soil from the roots as possible.
Replant the sections immediately in a prepared garden bed and water them well.
Credit: Illustration by Mavis Augustine Torke
Division doesn’t work with tree peonies; gardeners usually sow seed for them.
Fresh seed harvested immediately after the plant blooms results in the best plants the soonest.
Purchased dry seed should be sown in summer.
Credit: Illustration by Gary Palmer
It requires longer to hydrate and break its dormancy period.
Prepare a garden bed that will be home to the young peony plants for the first three years.
Press peony seeds into the soil no more than 1/2 inch deep and 1 to 2 inches apart.
Don’t cover the seeds with soil.
Water the bed and apply 1 inch of wood chips orwood mulch.
Types of Peony
There are three main types of peony: herbaceous, tree, and itoh.
These plants usually havescented flowersin shades of pink, red, and white.
As the name suggests, herbaceous peonies don’t form woody stems.
Herbaceous peony plants grow 2 to 3 feet tall.
They are more expensive and grow slower but can eventually reach up to 5 feet tall.
Tree peonies don’t need staking because their woody stems can withstand the weight of their huge flowers.
‘Seidai’ is atree peony varietythat produces double-flower pink blooms that can reach a mesmerizing 8 inches in diameter.
These peonies offer more unusual colors, including orange and yellow.
Some popular varieties are ‘Bartzella’ and ‘Cora Louise’.
There is no shortage of colorful peony varieties within each typehere are just a few favorites.
It grows 26 inches tall in Zones 3-8.
It has 10-inch anemone-flowered (or Japanese form), deep sugar-pink cupped blooms.
The center is crowded with narrow, creamy white petaloids.
‘Festiva Maxima’ Peony
Paeonia’Festiva Maxima' is an heirloom from the 1850s that’s still popular.
It bears white flowers with tiny flecks of crimson and grows 3 feet tall in Zones 3-7.
Fernleaf Peony
Paeonia tenuifoliahas rich red 3-inch flowers in early to midspring in Zones 3-8.
As its common name suggests,fernleaf peonyhas fernlike leaves with many fine-textured segments.
The creeping forms drape beautifully over rock walls.
After bloom time, deadhead the plant for neatness.
Baby’s breath prefers sweet (alkaline) soils with full sun and excellent drainage.
Shasta Daisy
Easy, always fresh, and always eye-catching,Shasta daisyis a longtime favorite.
All cultivars produce white daisy flowers in various degrees of doubleness and size.
The sturdy stems and long vase life make the flowers unbeatable for cutting.
Shasta daisy thrives in well-drained, not overly rich soil.
Taller sorts may need staking.
Flax must have light, free-draining soil; wet feet will kill it.
Flax enjoys full sun but will tolerate light shade, especially in the southern portion of the United States.
This English-style front garden plan capturesthe essence of a cottage garden.
Selecting deer-resistant varietiesincluding peonythat are lower on Bambi’s menu is an effective strategy.
Deer don’t bother peonies, though, unless they are the only food available.
Those gorgeous spring blooms attract butterflies, honeybees, and hummingbirds.
Staking peonies can be helpful, especially for types that have particularly large, heavy blooms.
Consider using grow rings during the blooming period to help corral and support the flowers.
