Video: How to Plant Peonies
In this excerpt from the Team Flower Growing and Arranging Peonies class, Foxie and I give a hands-on demo of how to plant peonies. You’ll see us give details on how to plant a peony root!
6 Steps to planting peonies:
Dig a hole—one that’s wide rather than deep. The hole needs to be a few times larger than your peony root.
Sprinkle a good handful each of Plant-tone (or all-purpose plant food) and bone meal (which adds more nutrients) in the hole and mix into the loosed soil.
Mound the mix into your root-supporting pile—essentially making a small mountain/volcano within the hole. Peonies are sensitive to the height in which they’re planted—if they’re planted too low, they won’t bloom.
Place your peony root eyes up on your mound, and bring your extra soil into the hole and just barely covering the eyes of the peony (about an inch or less). The further north you live, you’ll want to plant the root just a tad deeper.
Finish off with a layer of mulch to protect the root from the cold, and mark your plant with a flag or plant marker of your choice!
In the very early spring, about the end of February, pull back the mulch and watch for the first shoots to emerge. Once they do, sprinkle more Plant-tone and bone meal around the "drip line" of the plant (the circle around the edge of your hole where water and rain tend to drip down toward the root).
Key Points:
Before planting, the soil should be tilled (loosened), and if acidic, treated with lyme to balance it out.
Ideally, peonies should be planted in the fall so they have time to mature by the spring!
Bone meal will sometimes attract other animals, so be sure you have measures in place to ensure your peony roots are not exposed by digging hungry critters!
Your peony root should be soaked in water for 24 hours before planting in the ground, making sure it’s nice and plump!
For more details on types of peonies, how to care for and harvest peony plants, arranging with peonies, and more, check out the new Growing and Arranging Peonies class at teamflower.org!
