Are you new to peonies? Well, that’s no problem! While they are possibly the quintessential garden flower that has been admired by gardeners for generations, they so seem to be gaining more and more new admirers every year. Lucky for us, these lovely flowers are very easy to grow here. They can be planted from bulb or you can go with more mature, containerized plants for immediate gratification. We carry a wide selection of peony varieties every year for you to fall in love with and take home to your own garden. You want to get them while you can though because once they’re gone they’re usually gone for the season! We preorder our selection the fall before so that we know we have the best options for you. With limited quantities available it is often that what we preorder is all we can get for the year. So if you love it, put a ring on it. A peony support ring! Keep reading for that joke to land.
Peonies are overall a low maintenance perennial. They simply require a sunny planting location and well-drained soil. A peony cage is recommended to help support the large blooms this plant will produce. Otherwise your peony can wind up looking like a rag doll! It is much easier to put the cage in place when the plant has just emerged a few inches. It can be a challenge wrangling the foliage and blooms into a cage once it has fully leafed out. Choose the planting site carefully as they do not transplant well. If a peony must be moved however, it will be most successful in the fall once the plant is fully dormant.
If you already have peonies in your yard you may have noticed ants crawling all over your pretty flowers. This is good! You should fight the urge to leap into action at the sight of these harmless trespassers. They are attracted to the sugary droplets that collect on the exterior of the bud. Their feasting does not harm the peony at all. In fact, in exchange for the honeydew they battle the real bud-eating pests! The only occasion to ever want to shout, “HORAY ANTS!”
Pro tip for those of you who like a bouquet of fresh cut flowers in the house. You can cut the flowers when they are in their closed bud stage, wrap them in damp newspaper or paper towel inside of a plastic bag and store them in your refrigerator for up to 3 months! When you are ready for a fresh bouquet you simply pull them from the fridge, cut a few inches off the bottom of the stem and place in lukewarm water. In a couple of hours they will begin opening up. Another benefit to this new trick up your sleeve is the absence of ants on your bouquet!
These lovely plants make a great gift for spring and summer occasions. They are hardy to zone 3 and come in many different colors. There are even choices in bloom times! Our staff will be happy to help you pick some out the next time you are at the nursery.
