Herbaceous Peony flowers have been a familiar sight in home gardens for over 600 years, that much so that at one point because they were so commonly used gardeners began to turn away from growing peonies  in favor of more unusual plants, after all no self respecting gardener wants to grow a carbon copy yard, exactly like his neighbors .For this reason  garden decor,art and accent pieces have become for some gardeners just as important a feature in many garden spaces as the garden plants themselves.

Considering the beauty of peony flowers ,and the longevity of the peony plants themselves, it’s no wonder that they became the much esteemed and favored garden staple that they did.Even when the popularity of growing peonies faded amongst some gardeners ,peony flowers always retained their charm for those gardeners with aspirations towards creating  country or cottage themed gardens.Peony flowers particularly the double flowering peonies caught on with the new trend of shabby chic home decor ,which some home designers even extended beyond the home and its decor into the garden setting,  if you are wondering what a shabby chic garden may look like, in my opinion its just a country or cottage flower garden with a new name .  With this renewed interest from shabby chic gardeners ,plus the creation in recent years, of many new cultivars and hybrid peony flowers in wonderful new colors and shades previously not found in herbaceous peonies , the popularity of growing peonies in the home garden  has been re found by many home gardeners .
Clumps of peony flowers may survive for up to  50 years or more, so it is advisable to find out ahead of time what is the best way of growing peonies  and maintaining your peony plants once you have decided to grow them as chances are they will be with you for quite some time to come .
One of the key factors in peony flowers and their care and maintenance to prepare the site very thoroughly before planting peonies . Once peonies have become an established part of your  garden, they are rather an easy care low maintenance perennial plant.

Growing Peonies -Site Preparation

How to grow peonies -Peony flowers  grow best in cooler climate regions, areas where winter temperatures drop below zero as they require a period of cold and therefore dormancy to reset or replenish the energy supply in their growing buds for the next season. So for peonies too bloom really well they need to experience a prolonged period of winter chilling. Due to this factor many gardeners living in the warmer regions of the southern US states shy away from ever planting peonies, however, there are supposedly and I type the word  supposedly as I live in Canada where we and our peony flowers are always treated to a  prolonged period of winter chilling . There are peony varieties available that will bloom and and do well in Zone 8 gardens , Festiva Maxima  Sarah Bernhardt to name just two.

Though peony flowers enjoy winters chill,planting peonies in a sunny location is recommended as they will  definitely show superior sized blossoms when planted in full sun rather than in dappled or partial shade which they will tolerate. Growing peonies in shady conditions you will not be rewarded with the giant sized blooms of which many are capable. Growing  Peonies is not a difficult task at all as they are not overly picky as far as soil requirements are concerned , but when planting peonies they will definitely show to the gardeners advantage if some organic matter and compost is added to the  their planting hole when they are fist set into their garden location. Other than that, they require a location with good drainage they will live through periods of damp soil but would not do well in constantly damp conditions so planting peonies next to a pond or waterfall is to be avoided as the moisture would eventually cause their root systems to rot ,try to provide your peony flowers with a neutral soil (pH 7.0) or at the most, only very slightly acidic.

Peonies will eventually become large perennial plants that can occupy at least a three foot wide area so they need plenty of room for expansion so bear their future size in mind when planting peonies  You should  endeavor to locate them away from  large trees and shrubs with whom they would have to compete for root space and soil nutrients, resulting in diminished size and  quantity of peony flowers. While growing peonies is rather easy  peonies  are often  rumored to  not respond well to moving ,Although  I have not yet lost a peony that I have relocated, but I will not lie to you  there is a certain knack to moving peonies (see below), so choose your peony  planting spot carefully.

Planting Peonies

Peonies should be planted in the early fall months where ever possible early September until mid October is the perfect time for planting peonies this allows the peony’s root system  time to become established in the soil before the real on set of winter. As stated above mature peony plants will eventually reach a diameter of three feet or so, therefore it is crucial to give them enough room to grow and expand
Whenever you are planting peonies the planting hole should be  a minimum of 18 inches deep and of similar diameter. In the bottom of the planting hole, add a  layer of organic matter such as compost, pine bark, or mature sheep or cattle  manure to a depth of about 4 inches with this should be mixed  half a cup of plant food , or bone meal and regular garden soil  Fill the hole half way with this mixture   then set the peony root in place making very certain growing  eyes are  facing upward. Spread the roots of the peony plant outward placing them evenly across the planting site. Water copiously. The main secret to planting peonies is that you have planted the peony so that its eyes are no deeper than two inches  below the planting medium if you plant the peony so its eyes are deeper than this chances are the Peony may fail to flower or at least will not do so until time and weather have eroded the soil above the peony eyes to their preferred level.

If you are planting peonies that have previously successfully flowered while potted make sure you plant them at exactly the same level as they were growing in the plant pot. this is also the big secret to transplanting or moving peony flowers make sure that when you plant them in their new location that you are not planting them any deeper than they were planted in their old location if they were not flowering before then in their new home make certain that you do not set them in too deeply their eyes should be no deeper than 2 in below soil level. After the peony plant is in place, work the soil in around the roots with your hands making sure you leave no air pockets, finish filling the planting  hole, and then water yet again.

Planting peonies during the  spring months ,  may cause them not to produce flowers for up to two years. However,I have had Peony plants  which have been growing and flowering well in pots or containers that flower the first year after an early spring time transplant if they are not disturbed too much when taken from the pot.

Growing Peonies from Seed

There are two approaches to growing peonies from seed which give  a good success rate  .The first is the method I use

In late summer / early fall  collect seed pods from any cultivars that  produce seed pods you do not have to separate them as to type or variety.   Simply leave the seed pods in an open container to dry out completely, you will know when they are dry as they will begin to crack open and reveal the seed inside the pods.Remove the seeds.

Planting Peony Seeds Outdoors

Use the seeds as soon as they are properly ripened. Prepare a flower bed  somewhere in your garden  Simply plant the peony seeds much as you would plant bean seeds I poke a shallow hole with my finger and insert the seed . Add a marker so you don’t forget about them. Most peony seeds should grow an above ground  shoot in the coming spring or early summer months of the following season
This outdoor planting method  in early fall months  gives the peony  seeds their requisite warm moist then cold treatment of winter followed by the warming temperatures of spring.
I have a long spare piece of ground along one driveway that nothing much will grow in besides bishops weed and ditch lilies  for the last couple of years I have strewn a handfuls of peony seeds  , not even bothered to cover them with soil  I now have several  juvenile peonies  now all I have to do is wait five or six years for them to flower

This warm moist then cold treatment sequence for growing peonies must be mimicked by any indoor method of  propagation chosen to start peony seeds .Personally I would not choose to give over any of my  very valuable  and small indoor propagation area to seeds that take so long to produce a viable flower such as the peony plant , but if you are interested in indoor propagation of peony seeds or even cross breeding your own peony flowers then this page on the paeonia website is a good one to check out.

Peony Flowers
Recommended by gardening friends family and neighbors past and present.

Peony flowers Japanese style cultivar Bowl of Beauty

‘Bowl Of Beauty’ Japanese style peony , mid to late flowering .One of the most famous of the herbaceous peonies and rightly so for it blooms for almost twice as long as most other peony flowers, with many budded stems and blossoms opening one after another for more than a whole month. its areal eye pleaser It also has a wonderfully delicious scent. Reaches A height of 90cm so may need staking.

Peony flowers fully double blooms Duchesse de Nemours’

Duchesse de Nemours’ fully double, early flowerer
A Truly marvelous herbaceous peony , and one of the oldest and most famous white fully double  peonies. It has a pure, blemishless bone  white flowers, tinted lemony green at the base, with the scent reminiscent of  lily of the valley. It’s easy to grow and care for and flowers abundantly   its also an   excellent choice for cut flower arrangements . It’s  slightly shorter than other garden peonies, growing to approx 85cm, making it a sound  choice for a windy location.

Peony flowers full double Sarah Bernhardt pale pink  bloomer

Sarah Bernhardt’ – fully double, late flowering
A peony flower on my own wish list Sweetly scented, with pale pink flowers, this is favored by commercial cut-flower merchants often included in wedding bouquets and is one of the best known of all peony flowers. It’s very floriferous  and reliable perennial plant its  Only draw back  is that it’s a tall peony (1m), so will need staking.

Peony flowers semi-double Karl Rosenfield’ , mid to late season flowering.

Karl Rosenfield’ , mid to late season flowering

Another of my favorites This peony’s flowers appear to burn in the spring garden with their deep red hue , with tall, dark-colored strong stems which should be self supporting. The down side of reds is that they do not make such good cut flowers. Their vase life is shorter than the pinks and whites, particularly the fully doubles, and if picked in bud they won’t fully develop.

Peony flowers semi-double hybrid. Buckeye Belle’  very early flowering

Buckeye Belle’  very early flowering

This is the deep blood-red peony . It is an excellent garden variety which grows to nearly a meter tall, but should not need staking. lightly fragrant flower  The very dark petals almost a chocolate red are sprinkled with golden stamens. Also has very striking maroon fall foliage received an  award of Landscape Merit 2009.