Peonies, blooming in about 5 months.

Above is "Madison." A rather new peony to Earthworks. All peonys are categorized as a type:
Japanese, Bomb, Double, semi-double, single, cactus or dahlia type. As the hybridizing continues, I am certain they will add more. "Madison" is a Japanese type. This type has a very open look with a outer layer of guard petals, and upright stamens in the center. Most obvious when it is a two-toned flower. Madison is not this dark in our field. Colors can vary slightly depending on soil conditions, and of course the photographer and time of day, sunlight etc. Best to see them in person at my field.

This is "Coral Charm" above. Yes, that is my hand on the left side of the photo, this flower is HUGE. This type is semi-double. They are huge plants and early bloomers. Coral Charm & Coral Supreme both have very sturdy stems, making them perfect for cutting.

Photo above our peony section in 2009. We moved the 'patch' in 2010, so it should be fully recovered this year. We use floral netting to keep the flowers from falling over due to rain or from their own weight. What about the ants? Peonys do NOT need ants to open. The ants just happen to like the sweet waxy coating on the buds. Their feeding is harmless, however the biting from the large black ants is not. I do not have ants in the field, but I sure do at my home gardens. Before cutting those ant laden stems, I bang my pruners against the stem, and many of them will fall off, less biting. ouch. The suffering I endure for your bouquets!

Above is "Moon River," and this type is a double. Loaded with petals. I rarely cut a peony that is already open. For maximum vase time, cut at 'hard marshmallow' stage. When the bud is starting to show color & feels like a marshmallow that spent the night on the kitchen counter, it's perfect. Often, folks tell me when they bring their OWN flowers indoors they never last. It seems the common denominator is this: right before the flower is nearly dead, they cut it to bring it in to give it a few more days. Doesn't work that way!

Above is "Cheese Country." Not sure how they come up with some of these names. This peony was developed in Wisconsin, so that might explain this one! This is a Japanese type. What is unique with this one is the pink 'petaloides' that come out of the center. Seeing this often on the newer varieties. All of these shown here are for sale this spring, already potted and tucked under straw. You can view more at my peony blog & website (click at right).

Care of peonies:

planting: a potted peony can be planted anytime thru late October.

dividing: the BEST time is after hard frost thru mid October. an experienced propagator may also have success with April divisions

spacing: given plenty of room 3 square feet, they will never need to be divided. If the plant gets crowed and the number of blooms decline, that would be your indicators it needs dividing.

air flow: peonys can sometimes get foliar diseases, nothing deadly, and not necessarily every year. Allow for good spacing so foliage stays dry, always water at the base, not the foliage, you can use a fungicide if you already have known issues in your garden.

planting depth: CRITICAL. The eyes of the plant can be no deeper than 2" below the soil surface. If planted to deep, it may not bloom. If your plant is established, 2-3 years and no blooms it is likely too deep, dig up in late fall and replant. The pink 'growing points' or 'eyes' will be obvious. Some folks sell such tiny plant divisions (usually mail order) that they won't bloom for several years anyway.

site selection; prefer full sun, in a shady location plant may survive but not thrive.

watering: water in after planting, then again once a week if no rain until ground stays frozen, roots are growing! Once established, water 1-2" per week, minus rain, apply in 2 waterings not daily!

fertilizer: you can sprinkle some around in early spring, but if you have healthy soil, nothing extra should be needed.

fall clean-up: never remove foliage until after hard frost has killed it back. Until that point the foliage is making food for the root system. Turn off the lawn mower...you know who you are!

cages: great to use to support heavy blooms. Purchase newer varieties with 'sturdy stems' and even after rain, flower stand.

disbudding: To create huge blooms, remove all the smaller buds in any cluster, leaving only the largest. Also, on young plants that only have a few buds, pinch all or most off. The plants puts a huge amount of energy to making the flowers, divert it to the root system for the plants future instead.

ants in the flowers: If you cut open flowers, ants may be inside the flower. You can safely dunk the open flower in a bucket of cool water (outside of course) and most of the ants will float out.

Summary: Peonys are one of the 'backbones' of any perennial garden. They look best planted in groups. They are long lived and carefree. Every garden should have some of these beauties!