Peony: purchase, planting and care. Latest tips from the “House and Cottage” section

Peonies have a fairly powerful root system that grows in depth and breadth, so it is necessary to prepare a planting hole measuring at least 60-70 cm in diameter and 70 cm in depth. If we dig a hole that is not deep enough, then the roots of the peony, having reached hard ground, will stop their growth.

Don't forget to put drainage at the bottom of the planting hole. It can be gravel, coarse sand or broken brick.

Then we fill the lower part of the hole with an earthen mixture, which consists of the top layer of soil, rotted manure, compost and peat, it is also good to add 150-200 g of superphosphate or 300-400 g of bone meal or ash, and if your soil is acidic, then It’s a good idea to also add 200-400 g of crushed slaked lime. Mix the mixture thoroughly and add water.

We fill the upper part of the hole with good garden soil without adding any fertilizers, and we will plant the plant in it.

It is better to prepare the planting hole in advance, about a month before planting, so that the soil has time to settle. If you are preparing a hole right before planting peonies, the soil must be lightly compacted so that after planting it does not settle - then the planted plant may end up not being at the depth required, which will negatively affect growth.

Bushes with large, heavy flowers need support

Peonies with light a simple flower do without support

The best cuttings for planting are those that have 3-5 renewal buds and the same number of roots. For better rooting of the plant, it is recommended to shorten the roots to 10 cm.

Why should there be the same number of buds and roots? If there are a lot of buds in the division and few roots, then in the spring the stems that grew from these buds will not have enough nutrition. After all, until new roots have formed, young plant receives nutrients from old roots. If the opposite happens - there are few buds and many roots, then the plant in the first year (and the next) may not develop new buds, but be content with the existing ones, which will undoubtedly affect the flowering of the bush.

We make the mash in this way: dissolve 60 g of copper sulfate, 2 tablets of heteroauxin and 5 kg of clay in 10 liters of water, and you can also add 500 g of wood ash.

Before planting, we carefully inspect the planting material and very carefully trim all rotten and damaged tissue to healthy parts. Then, for disinfection, you should hold the roots in a solution of potassium permanganate (7-10 g per 10 liters of water) or copper sulfate (100 g per 10 liters of water) and sprinkle the wounds with crushed charcoal.

You can also improve rooting using the following procedure: dip the roots in a clay mash, then lightly dry them and plant.

Planting correctly

Landing - very important stage in growing peonies, because the further development of our young plant, its lifespan and, of course, the splendor of flowering depend on how correctly we plant it.

We plant the peony in the upper part of the planting hole we prepared, which is filled with garden soil. Special attention should be paid to the planting depth: renewal buds should be at a depth of no more than 3-5 cm per loamy soils, and on light sandy loam - 5-7 cm. Such deepening of the buds must be maintained throughout the life of the bushes and then our peonies will delight us with their abundant flowering for a long time.

If the planting is shallow, then in the spring the buds may suffer from late frosts, in the summer - from overheating, and in winters with little snow - from frost. And, as a result, some of them may die, then good flowering we won't get it anymore.

If we plant peonies too deep, for example, the topmost bud is at a depth of 15-20 cm, then we will never see the bushes bloom, although they will look completely healthy.

Having established the planting material at the depth we need, we fill it with fertile soil, but do not compact it, so as not to accidentally damage the buds and roots, but carefully squeeze it with our hands, eliminating voids. Then water it abundantly, add more soil if necessary, and mulch the plantings.

For winter, we cut off the entire above-ground part of the plant to ground level. But we do this only after the first hard frost, when the peony stems die. Up to this point, there is still an outflow of nutrients from the leaves and stems to the storage roots. Therefore, early pruning will cause great harm to the plant.

Some gardeners explain the early cutting of stems by the fact that the leaves have dried out, but the leaves dry out only on sick plants, and if it is healthy, then the leaves remain fresh and beautiful until frost.

After we have cut off the above-ground part, it is worth paying attention to whether the buds at the base of the shoots are exposed. If this happens, then you need to hill up the bushes by 7-10 cm. Usually, peonies are not covered for the winter. The exception is newly planted plants; it is recommended to cover them with peat or humus with a layer of 10-15 cm. In early spring, before the emergence of seedlings, we remove this covering layer.

If the peony doesn't bloom...

• The planting site was chosen incorrectly - too shady, close to buildings, trees and shrubs, not humid enough or, conversely, too wet (no drainage).

• The plant is planted too deep or too shallow.

• The peony was recently planted and the planting material was divided very finely.

• The peony bush is already old and requires replanting and division.

• The buds were damaged by late spring frosts.

• Increased soil acidity.

• Excessive amounts of nitrogen fertilizers.

• Lack of nutrition and moisture during the period when renewal buds are forming.

• The leaves were cut off very early in the fall (before they fell).

So, peonies, when to replant, how to propagate, care for them is the topic of our conversation. When peonies bloom, the garden is transformed beyond recognition. Very beautiful and festive! It turns out that this flower can grow and bloom magnificently in one place for 100 years or more! This means that it is worth paying more attention and time to the issues of choosing a location and preparing the soil. Look at the photo of the peony at the end of the article - isn’t your garden still decorated with such gorgeous flowers?

Purchased peony roots - what they should be

A beautiful, abundantly flowering peony bush cannot grow from poor planting material. Sign good quality peony root - divisions (this is the name given to part of the root tuber separated from mother plant) - large or very large, bright, shiny buds of renewal, as well as the absence of areas affected by rot. The best peony root for planting is a division with a bunch of young thin roots and several large buds.

It is very easy to distinguish young roots from old ones. Old peony roots are usually darker, while young ones are lighter. The length of the roots should be 15-25 cm, thickness - 10 mm or more.

The root collar is the weakest point of the peony, the gateway for infection. The more old tissue there is on the root collar, the more likely it is to have an infection. At the same time, old tissue is a field “sown” with dormant buds. According to my observations, divisions from 2-3-year-old bushes with 1-2 buds develop much better than very large ones with 3-5 buds from old bushes. The young ones are somewhat behind in growth compared to the “old ones” only for the first 2-3 years, and as the roots grow, they overtake them.

In cuttings from old bushes there are often hollows formed as a result of an infection. But if the rhizomes do not rot, and the hollow is surrounded by healthy tissue, then this is a minor defect. True, such roots can become a haven for garden ants.

Note! The place of the cut or break should be matte. If it shines when wetted, this indicates the presence of putrefactive processes. In this case, very carefully strip all sections down to healthy tissue.

Peonies - planting in open ground

A planting hole measuring 60x60x60 cm should be prepared in advance. On dense soil (clay, heavy chernozem), it must be filled with loose nutritious soil mixture rich in humus. After all, peony is a big gourmet; in the spring it always lacks nitrogen. If the soil is light, the hole does not need to be prepared in advance. If you dug a hole immediately before planting, be sure to fill it with water so that the soil quickly settles.

Before planting, the cuttings are soaked in water. Severely dried out cuttings can be left in a container with water for up to three days. Peony drinks water no less than cabbage. But from excess moisture, the roots can burst, forming cracks. Therefore, it is important to monitor this process and prevent them from cracking.

Young divisions are planted in rows taking into account their size: small ones - vertically, and large ones - at an angle. Immediately before planting, inspect all suspicious places on the rhizomes, if necessary, clean them to healthy tissue. Places of cuts, breaks and the root collar are generously sprinkled with wood ash.

Before planting, the purchased division is soaked for 30 minutes in a suspension of foundationol or topsin-M (according to the instructions), and then dipped in a clay mash of the consistency of sour cream with the addition of up to 100 g of copper sulfate.

Peony planting depth

In floriculture literature it is usually written that when planting a peony, the buds should be at a depth of 2-3 cm from the soil surface, since peonies do not bloom when planted deep. However, this is not always true. For example, interspecific hybrids are capable of germinating even if the root is at a depth of 60 cm. I had such a case. True, we had to wait 7 long years for flowering.

But shallow planting, in which the root collar is too close to the soil surface, is very dangerous: it suffers not only from heat and frost, but also from excess melt water in the spring (this can be the reason for the loss of peony bushes).

Peony - when to replant

From my point of view, in Kuban no earlier than October 15-20. Why? Because peonies lay flower buds in the first ten days of October, when the leaves are still green, that is, there is an outflow of nutrients into the rhizome. This process continues until the leaves turn yellow. This is what you need to focus on when determining the timing of digging and dividing bushes.

Usually in the literature it is recommended to plant peonies in August. However, these deadlines are for Middle zone Russia and Belarus. It’s much warmer here in Kuban, so the planting times are different. If they ask me for peony shoots, then I divide and plant for propagation in early October. But planting material can be planted until frost.

How to divide peonies when transplanting

The bush chosen for division is dug up with a lump of earth and washed from the ground with a strong stream of water. If there are several divisions, from bushes different varieties, then you need to hang up labels with the name of the variety and transfer them to a dark place for 1-2 days. During this time, the roots wither somewhat. This makes division easier and prevents breaking and cracking of roots in the wrong place.

Peony rhizomes of 4-5 years of age can be divided into sections with an ax, placing its blade in the center of the root collar so that there are the same number of buds on the right and left. Tapping the ax butt with a heavy hammer, cut the bush in half. Next comes a sharp knife and pruning shears.

To divide old bushes, a pruner is enough, and a 2-3-year-old bush can easily be broken into sections even by hand.

Place for planting peony - which one to choose

Peonies tolerate light or partial shading well. At my dacha there are peonies that are in an area open to the sun all day and night, and there are those that are illuminated by the sun in the morning and evening, and during the day, when the sun is hot, they find themselves in deep shade. They feel great everywhere, but, it seems to me, in the area where the peony bushes are in the shade for some time of the day, they bloom more beautifully and longer than others.

As you can see, peonies have a lot of secrets. But a person who is in love with these flowers will always find an approach to his favorites and reveal their secrets.

It is important to know about peonies little secret. They have two clearly defined periods of active root formation (growth of suction feeding roots) - at the end of August-September and in early spring from awakening and strictly until mid-May. As luck would have it, they start tempting us with seedlings in February-March. What to do? I buy them, store them as much as I can in the state of sleeping beauties, whoever wakes up, I plant them on the loggia in suitable containers, and cherish them until spring. The optimal temperature should be somewhere around +5°C, the maximum permissible is +15°C, the minimum permissible is -5ºC (at lower temperatures I cover it well, put it in a large cardboard box). I plant my winter peonies at the very beginning of May, and there are no problems. But I (unknowingly) had experiences of planting from containers in June... The plants, to put it mildly, did not feel well. Several tree-like trees were destroyed, although they looked great before planting. This is how I became convinced that the recommendation was correct: if you weren’t able to plant it before mid-May, then it’s better to keep the peonies in containers until August, it will be more comfortable there. You can dig it in the shade.

http://myproplants.com/100029/a126633/p554059/

On own experience I was convinced that peonies (herbaceous) planted in the spring or early summer then slow down their development and do not bloom... I did this out of necessity (I saved peonies that were to be “liquidated” from friends), I hope they will still be pleased with the flowering this year!

http://www.asienda.ru/post/29767/

My grandmother planted it like this: she dug a hole, put broken bricks on the bottom and on top of it an old fabric, like a quilted jacket, so that the fabric was thick. I covered it all with soil and only then stuck the seedling in. It turned out that the root grew in breadth, and not in depth, and this gave a lot of flowers.

https://otvet.mail.ru/question/24292928

Peony photo

Peonies are not difficult to care for. They need regular loosening of the soil, watering and fertilizing. If you properly prepare the soil for planting, young plants will grow and develop normally in the first two years without the application of mineral fertilizers.

It is believed that throughout history breeding work with peonies, up to 100 thousand varieties could be obtained. Today, the official register includes more than 5,000 registered varieties of herbaceous peonies alone.

Peonies don't bloom - why and what to do

So, why peonies don’t bloom are the most common reasons.

Bad landing site

The area may be too shady, too dry, or, conversely, too wet, with stagnant water. Perhaps the peony bush grows too close to trees providing shade or, for example, to the wall of a house. In this case, it is necessary to replant the plant. Peony prefers a lot of light. Strong shading of the peony, even for a couple of hours a day, significantly reduces the abundance and splendor of peony flowering.

If peonies are planted near the walls of outbuildings or a house, they will also suffer from dripping, snowdrifts, which are larger than usual, and if this is the wall of a house, then from overheating.

Planting peonies near trees or large shrubs is fraught with a lack of water and nutrition: minerals. Despite the fact that more frequent feeding and watering will help improve the situation, it is better to plant peonies from such places.

Also remember that peonies absolutely cannot tolerate any waterlogging; they will begin to rot.

Poor soil composition

Peonies do not like excessive soil acidity, against which the soil must be limed. Plants feel best at a pH of 6.5 (not less than 5.8 and not more than 7). To increase the pH by one, you need to add 350 g/m2 of lime. A lack of potassium can also affect the lack of flowering. Potassium poor podzolic soils bushes need to be fed 1-2 times with potassium sulfate (10-15 g/m2) or potassium magnesium (15-20 g/m2). Below is a table that will allow you to accurately calculate required amount fertilizers applied for peonies (and not only for them)

Poor planting division of peonies

If the division is too small (one or two buds), then in the first year of the growing season the peony will take minerals for growth from old, large roots, while new ones will not form.

If, on the contrary, the division is too large, then there will be an imbalance between powerful roots and the number of buds. For example, if in the division a large number of buds but few roots, actively growing and vegetative shoots will starve

Incorrect feeding peonies

Sometimes peonies are simply fed with fertilizers, especially nitrogen.

When growing peonies, remember this rule: it is better to “underfeed” these flowers than to “overfeed”. However, the lack of fertilizing is visible by such a sign as the appearance of buds that do not fully open and do not bloom in the usual way.

It is better to feed peonies with fertilizers immediately after they have bloomed, when buds are actively forming, which will bloom in two years.

Incorrect watering, humidification mode

Peonies are at risk from prolonged weather with rain during the budding period: at this time, the buds are saturated with water, do not bloom, and may turn brown.

More often than not, flowers already affected by gray mold suffer from this, so it is very important to carry out sanitary and preventive treatments against diseases and pests.

In turn, during the budding period, drought is also dangerous. At this time, peonies need rare watering, which moistens the soil to the entire depth of the roots. Drought after flowering will also reduce the number of flowers for the following year.

Incorrect cropping

You can cut off the wilted part of the peony only in late autumn. In July-August, the plants are affected by gray rot, and some cut off the entire above-ground part of the bush, thinking that since the plant has already bloomed, it no longer needs foliage. This is a very serious mistake in the process of caring for and growing peonies, since after flowering the flower buds are laid.

It happens that gardeners cut flowers too often and in large quantities.

Viral diseases of peonies

Signs of a bush disease - the crown stretches (the stems grow thin and branched) and the leaves become curly and wrinkled, the shoots become leafy very often. The peony looks dwarf. Such bushes are dug up and destroyed.

Subtleties of caring for peonies

Like herbaceous and tree peonies preparing for winter?

Preparing peonies for winter involves feeding them with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers to strengthen the root system. Despite the fact that adult tree peonies and Ito hybrids are quite frost-resistant, it is better to cover them for the winter - wrap the branches with agrofibre or other fabric and do not open them until spring, until the morning frosts have ended.

Flower buds of tree peonies are afraid of cold winds: because of them, they may simply not bloom.

The plants can be covered with spruce forest, and the root part can be covered with earth. This will allow the tree peony to send out additional shoots from below, and the bush will become more spreading over time.

Both herbaceous and tree-like peonies must be rid of leaves for the winter.

If warm weather suddenly persists for a long time, the leaves should be removed - herbaceous peonies cut at the root, and for tree-like leaves, leave cuttings at 1/3.

If the peonies suddenly become ill with something, the bushes and the ground around them should be treated with appropriate agrochemicals for the winter.

Do peonies need to be trimmed?

No, peonies do not need pruning.

Peonies only need decorative pruning, for example, if a branch is broken or a shoot is frozen.

For the winter, the leafy ground part of herbaceous peonies needs to be removed, but this is done along with regular garden cleaning in preparation for winter.

However, there is a point regarding tree peonies, namely adults already flowering bushes. If you want to next year the plants bloomed especially luxuriantly, it is necessary - after the peonies have bloomed and formed seed pods - to cut each branch from the top by 3 buds down.

Then on the 4th bud exactly flower bud. This is done with all the branches on the bush, leaving only one seed pod. Next year you will receive many beautiful flowers.

Better companion flowers for peonies

It's hard to imagine a May garden without peonies. The lush thickets of wildly flowering bushes are awe-inspiring. The unusual smells emanating from the inflorescences enchant, forcing you to listen and unravel the subtle melodies of aromas again and again...

It is for their vigorous, albeit short-lived flowering that they try to include peonies in flower arrangements, borders and front gardens.

Using the example of a flower garden created by designer E. Voronova, we will tell you how to get friendly flowering and emphasize the beauty of peonies with a worthy plant frame.

These Popular Plants Can Be Hard to Find appropriate place. They love the sun, but at the same time it would be good to protect the plantings from the heat of the day.

They need moist soil, but when the root system becomes soaked, diseases appear. The best place for this crop is the eastern side of the building, with a distance of at least one meter from the wall (blind area).

If the area is flooded by upper waters or groundwater is nearby, then peonies are planted on a mound, in raised flower beds.

In our composition, peonies are dispersed over the surface of a small artificial slope directed from the wall of the house to the lawn. The edge of the slope is a paved path, which also prevents the spread into the flower garden. lawn grass.

Peonies and companions

Planting species with different flowering periods makes it possible to prolong the overall flowering of peonies, so we

officinalis peony and garden peony varieties were planted. Both species, having densely double flowers, are similar in appearance, but differ in flowering times by a week. Fassin's catnip was chosen as the main accompanying plants.

The listed species produced powerful, abundantly flowering small flowers waves that filled the space between the peony bushes. Additional plants were bellflower and Carpathian bellflower. They add variety and enrich the tonal palette.

A little white, separating the diversity of inflorescences, was obtained by adding spot planting of fennel bushes.

Unlike the inflorescences of white varieties of peonies, this plant is not bright accent. Its numerous inflorescences, intertwined with catnip inflorescences, give the effect of sea foam.

A flower garden is convenient because you can always add something to it. To be convinced of this, just look at spring flower garden, where against the background of soil mulched with bark, the area actually occupied by plants is visible.

So, in the years following the creation of the flower garden, the main assortment was replenished with forest sage, brunnera, Griffith's euphorbia, physostegia, and liatris.

At some point, it became clear that in the summer, after the flowering of peonies, there was not enough color, and thuja occidentalis 'Yellow Ribbon' and 'Atropurpurea' appeared around the edges, and in the background – .

In winter, in addition to woody plants The flower garden can be decorated with unpruned dried Fassin bushes in the fall.

Flower garden care

Peonies are drought-resistant, but in the spring, during budding, after flowering and in the fall, they require abundant but infrequent watering. Watering will not harm other plants, especially damselfish.

In early spring, add mulch and apply potassium and phosphorus fertilizers under the plants, after mixing them with compost soil. During the budding of peonies under terry varieties install supports. After flowering, trim the flower stalks of peonies so that the plants do not waste energy on ripening the seeds. Mantle and catnip may require pruning of flowering stems in the summer.

In autumn, cut off the aboveground part of perennials, cover peonies with spruce branches or cut stems. In early spring, thuja may require protection from the scorching sun.

As you can see, the to-do list is small, and given that weeding may only be required in the fall, the flower garden can be classified as a low-maintenance arrangement.

Peony planting units

Cuttings of tree peonies grafted onto herbaceous rhizomes.

Each peony division should have at least 3-5 shoots with buds.

Tree peony seedling with 6 shoots.

Peony seedling with 8 or more shoots.

Planting and replanting peonies

Planting a peony while preserving the coma - photo

1. To plant both tree and herbaceous peonies, you should prepare a hole 60 cm deep and 60-70 cm in diameter.

2. A layer of drainage material, for example expanded clay, is placed at the bottom of the hole, which will protect the peony from stagnation of water.

3. The hole is filled 1/3 with earth, compost and humus.

4. If necessary, heavy soil is diluted with sand.

5. Now all the components are thoroughly mixed in the planting hole itself, and the planting mixture is leveled.

7. Carefully remove the peony from the container.

8. The plant is placed in the center of the planting hole so that the renewal buds are 5 cm below the soil level.

10. The loose soil around the planted peony should be immediately compacted well.

11. Then the peony seedling is watered abundantly.

12. And the stem at the base is sprinkled with a mound of earth.

Planting a peony with a lump

How to properly replant a peony

1. The bushes are dug up, removed with a pitchfork, the shoots are cut off, and the roots are washed with a stream of water.

2. The plant is left in the shade for 3-4 hours, the fleshy roots are shortened to 15-20 cm.

3. Sections are processed charcoal or a mixture of coal and colloidal sulfur (1:1).

4. Individual sections are disinfected, and the bush is planted in a hole prepared in advance.

Peony transplant

Peony propagation

Reproduction by dividing tree peonies - photo

1. Carefully dig up the bush at a distance of 20 cm from the roots.

2. Use a garden fork to remove the peony and shake the roots off the ground.

3. Now wash off the soil from the peony rhizomes with a stream of water.

4. Leave the plant in the shade for 3-4 hours so that the roots dry out a little.

5. Remove all leaves from the peony along with the petioles.

6. Strip all rotten areas down to healthy tissue.

7. Separate the rhizome with your hands, with a knife or using auxiliary wedges.

8. Before planting, all cuttings must be disinfected.

Tree peony division

Reproduction of herbaceous peonies by division - photo

1. The herbaceous peony should be dug up and pulled out with a pitchfork.

2. Gently shake off the soil from the roots.

3. The roots are thoroughly washed and allowed to dry.

4. All leaves are cut off and rotten roots are removed.

5. The rhizome is divided into several planting sections.

6. Before planting, the cuttings are disinfected in a fungicide solution.

Dividing herbaceous peony

Peony propagation - questions and answers

How to propagate a tree peony yourself? I have two varietal bushes.

Marianna Kokorysheva, Kaluga

This can be done in four ways - seeds, cuttings, layering and dividing the bush.

1. The easiest way to propagate rooted tree peonies is by dividing the bush from late August to September. Such plants are hardier and good care very durable. They grow slower than grafted ones and have a predominance of single or semi-double flowers.
2. The most productive method (and it is usually used for mass propagation of varietal plants) is grafting a cutting of a young shoot onto the root of a herbaceous peony. However, it requires experience and skill in vaccination. This can be done from July until late autumn or early spring (March-April). In this case, cuttings are harvested in the fall or cut in the spring before the sap flows.
3. It can also be propagated by layering, bending the shoot in the fall when covering the plant or in the spring, covering the top with soil mixed with peat with a layer of 5-8 cm.
4. To get many viable plants with unexpected colors, it is best to sow seeds. But their “behavior” does not please everyone.

Usually they are sown in the ground after harvesting - in the fall, but only a part germinates the following spring. The remaining shoots will appear in another year. The fact is that peonies need a two-stage stratification: a warm period for root development and a cold period for shoot growth.

After three months in the room, many seeds will produce roots. Seedlings can be planted in pots and placed in the refrigerator, making sure they do not dry out. After another 3 months, cotyledons should appear - this is a sign of shoot regrowth. Now the plant can be planted in open ground, weather permitting.

In the first year, the seedling develops 1-2 leaves, which die in the fall. In the second year, a shoot approximately 20-30 cm long grows and becomes woody. Next, new shoots grow and tiller. The first flowers usually appear in the 4-5th year.

Germination can be accelerated if, in the fall, the seeds are wrapped in damp sphagnum and placed in a plastic container with a lid.

7 STEPS TO FLOWERING LONGEVITY OF PEONIES

In my garden, herbaceous peonies have been growing for decades, and all this time they delight with regular lush flowering.

In my opinion, these are the most unpretentious perennials, able to put up with even some errors in care. But there are still several conditions that must be observed when growing peonies.

REMOVAL OF BUDS

For the first two years after planting, I do not allow the peony to bloom. During this period, the main task of the plant is to take root well and form young roots. If buds appear, I remove them immediately so that they do not take away all the strength of the plant. I expect full flowering in the 3-4th year.

PLENTY WATERING

Peony requires infrequent but abundant watering. I usually pour 2-3 10-liter buckets under an adult bush. The interval between waterings, depending on the weather, ranges from 10 to 15 days. Irrigation is especially important during the period of leaf growth.

FEEDING FROM THE FIRST YEAR

Many people believe that There is no need to feed peonies for the first two years after planting., they have enough nutrients added to the planting hole. But I have a different opinion: it is difficult for growing roots to reach the fertilized layer of soil, so the young plant needs to be fed. And it is best to do this from the beginning of the growing season until the end of June. For feeding, I use mullein solution, which promotes the development of the root system, the formation of stems, leaves and renewal buds. Or I use the full mineral fertilizer, having previously dissolved it in water. Subsequently, in the first half of the growing season, I apply nitrogen and complex fertilizing, and after flowering I add phosphorus-potassium fertilizers.

KIDNEY CONTROL

For normal peony flowering, the distance from the highest renewal bud on the rhizome to the surface of the ground should be 3-7 cm (on heavy soils - 3-4 cm, on light soils - 5-7 cm). It is important to monitor this indicator, since the rhizome of the plant grows upward, and during weeding and loosening, the earth is raked away from the buds, and over time they may end up on the surface.

The buds that reach the surface suffer from frost and heat, the plant weakens and blooms poorly. Peonies with too deep a bud grow well, but do not produce flowers. I regularly check the position of the top bud and, if necessary, hill up or unhill the plants.

CAREFUL CUT

At the base of each stem, renewal buds are laid - the key to powerful development and abundant flowering plants in subsequent years. Therefore, I cut peonies for a bouquet from no more than one third of the bush, and I do it very carefully. It is important to keep at least a couple of lower leaves on the stem.

DISEASE PREVENTION

Peonies often suffer from fungal diseases.

Fallen flower petals lying on peony leaves provoke the appearance of gray rot in the plant. This disease occurs especially often in damp weather. Therefore, I try to immediately remove faded flowers: I cut off the heads to the first green leaf. If gray rot overtakes a bush during the flowering period, then the young buds die first, the infection spreads very quickly and can destroy the entire plant.

With leaf spot, fungal spores can be seen on the underside of the leaves, while on the upper surface sheet plate Purple or light brown spots form. The disease most often occurs when peony bushes are planted too thickly, as well as when there is a lack of nitrogen fertilizing.

For fungal diseases, I usually spray with fungicidal preparations. You can also use soda ash (50 g per 10 liters of water), copper sulfate(50-70 g per 10 l of water), colloidal sulfur (60-100 g per 10 l of water).

WINTER SHELTER OF HERBSY PEONIES

After the first frost, but not before the stems have died, I prune the plants, leaving about 7-10 cm from ground level. Pruning too early is harmful to peonies, because nutrients must flow from the leaves and stems to the roots.

When a constant is established negative temperature, the plant can be covered with earth or pine needles. I also use sphagnum moss for cover. It contains carbolic acid– an antiseptic that reliably protects peonies from fungal diseases. In the spring, as soon as the soil thaws, I immediately remove the insulating layer of mulch from the plants.

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Classification of peonies by flower shape

It’s probably worth starting a conversation about peonies with morphology. Let's talk about the classification of peonies by flower shape.

• The first is a simple form. The flower has 1-2 rows of regular petals (petalodes). In the center of the flower there are real stamens and pistils. Petalodies are real wide petals.
• The second is a semi-double form. This form already has several rows of petals. There are also real stamens and pistils. This form is distinguished by a large number of rows of petalodes - up to 5-6 rows.
• The third is the terry form of peonies. This includes spherical or bomb-shaped peonies. A peony flower consists only of petals; it has practically no stamens, only pistils. All the stamens eventually turned into petals.
• The fourth is an anemone-shaped flower. Its central petals have a different color and a slightly changed appearance - the petals are thinner and collected in a small ball, and in the center there are stamens, but they are modified, called staminodes.
• The fifth is the Japanese form of peony. The central staminodes are narrower and elongated, often differ in color and have a border of a different shade. They have no stamens.

There are also intermediate forms of peonies.

Garter of peonies

Many types of peonies, if you do not have time to tie them up in time, can fall apart and fall, so they must be tied up, since both rain and wind can knock down peonies. This applies more to double forms, their flowers are heavier. Simple forms can grow without tying up.

Peonies bloom

The duration of flowering does not depend directly on the shape of the flower, but more on the variety. Peony flowers can bloom for 7-10 days, or up to two weeks. Other varieties can bloom for up to 20 days. Single and semi-double peonies usually bloom for about one week. By selecting peonies of different varieties on the site, you can achieve continuous flowering of peonies on the site for up to two months. To get such a long flowering, you will have to plant up to two dozen different bushes on the site.

The international register of peony varieties includes several thousand items. And for small garden you can choose only three varieties - early, middle and late, thus creating continuous flowering peonies for a couple of months. Some varieties of peonies bloom earlier than lilacs, and the latest ones will last until the first ten days of July. The choice of peony variety depends on the soil and lighting of the area, on the location of the peonies in the flower garden, mixboard, border, group planting. And, of course, the main criterion remains your taste and preferences.

Buying peony planting material in spring

It is well known that best time for dividing and planting and replanting peonies - this is the end of August - beginning of September. Nevertheless, garden centers Already in March they will begin to offer planting material (peony cuttings). The price is attractive. I would like to buy it, because such varieties may not be found later.

Peonies can be saved until autumn, when they can be planted in the ground. They need to be put in damp moss, and if there is no moss, just in peat, which needs to be made slightly, slightly damp, placed in it and put in the refrigerator until April. It is better to wrap the peat in paper, and the paper in a bag, and only then put it all in the refrigerator. You need to store it in the lower compartment for vegetables and fruits. It is sometimes necessary to check how the peony divisions are doing, as rot may develop. If you find rot, it must be removed immediately, and the areas treated with at least brilliant green or potassium permanganate, and storage continued until April. As soon as the snow melts, and you can already dig a hole, we plant a division in the cold soil, and it will grow, since the roots develop at a temperature of 5-10 degrees above zero - this optimal temperature for rooting peonies in spring and autumn.

If there is no permanent place, you can plant peonies temporarily until the fall, and in the fall, carefully transfer them with a lump of earth to permanent place. But in principle, you can immediately plant them in a permanent place in April. If the peony division is not infected initially, if it is healthy, then the likelihood that it will take root is very high.

A high-quality cutting will take root well if it is planted correctly and provided with subsequent care for two to three years. It is important not to bury the renewal buds, otherwise you won’t get any fruit from the peonies. lush flowering. On loamy soils, peony buds should be located at a depth of 3-5 cm, and on light sandy loam soils - at a depth of 5-7 cm. When planting peonies, adjust the depth by adding soil after abundant watering. In hot weather, it is better to mulch the planting site of the peony division to protect it from drying out. Before the attack winter cold Experts recommend covering peonies with peat or loose garden soil, adding 10-15 cm of it on top.

Reasons for peonies not blooming

The most common reasons why peonies do not bloom:

1. Incorrect choice places for planting peonies. Peonies should not be planted under trees, especially when the branches hang low. Of course, it looks beautiful under conifers: spruce and pine, but you need to plant it away from them. The place should be sunny. There should be no flooding with melted spring waters.

2. Peonies were planted incorrectly. The buds were too deep when planted - 10 centimeters or even more. The buds should be at a depth of 3-5 centimeters from ground level down. Those. you bought a peony cut, there are 2-3 fleshy thick roots, a root collar and 2-3-4 renewal buds. These buds can be buried approximately 2-3 centimeters. And so that they do not go down when you water the hole, you must first fill the hole with nutrients, fertilizers, dolomite flour put more, because peonies love the alkaline reaction of the soil, and trample it and water it so that the peonies do not go into the depths. And then they will grow normally. Peonies should be planted in clean garden soil so that they do not touch fertilizers.

If after planting the buds are slightly higher than they should be, you need to add soil on top, since the buds cannot be above ground level - they may freeze. Even if the buds are bare after winter, when the snow has melted, you can simply sprinkle them with earth.

How many years can peonies grow in one place?

The literature says that peonies (including tree peonies) can grow in one place for up to 40 years. Some species can grow up to 50 years. There are species that need to be divided every 7-8 years. The highest quality cuttings are 4-year-old plants.

What is a high-quality peony cutting?

This is part of the rhizome, which can consist of one or two parts, and at least 3-5 buds. Peonies with one bud are often sold in pots. It's not scary. In the first year, only one bud can sprout, the rest of the buds will sleep for now, this is normal. Maybe two buds will sprout. In the first year, the sprout may be 30 cm, or maybe even 10-12 cm. This is not scary. This is a feature of the first year of development. If a bud appears, it must be cut off. On hybrids, the bud can be left in the second year of development. And with milky-flowering peonies we wait up to three years, and only after three years, when the roots have grown and developed well, then there will be large, good flowers on the good roots.

But if you divide a large peony bush in half, it’s not very good. The fact is that the physiology of the bush is such that with such a transplant the bush produces many thin shoots, but at the same time the peony stops blooming.