Those peonies though…

Sorry that I’ve been absent for awhile. I was feeling a bit uninspired for awhile! However, now I have some things I’d like to share with you all.

Namely, these peonies.

Peonies are almost my favorite flower. The only reason why they are not is because they only bloom for a (glorious) 2 weeks.

When I moved into my house, the front was quite bare except for some Japenese barberry plants that soon became the bane of my existence.

Last year, Bae trimmed them down and dug them out and dropped them off somewhere in the middle of the night. I immediately began mentally planning a garden but just couldn’t decide what I wanted to put there. Bae likes symmetry, so he suggested ripping out the remaining plans and doing some nice layering. Sounds great, right? NOT. That would mean disrupting my perfect peonies.

When I first moved into this house, I got the gardening itch. But there was so much to do and plan, plus plants are so expensive. I chose carefully. And my choosing including two baby peony plants and one ginormous peony that I believe cost me $60.

Do you know much about peonies? Here is what I know:

1) when they like their location they thrive. Some species can live up to 100 years. They like full sun and hate wet feet.

2) Don’t worry if your peonies are covered in ants. Ants love peonies too, so just leave them alone and shake off the flower when you cut it.

3) Peonies need support for their heavy blooms. You can find some peony cages but you can also rig up your own.

4) The peony bloom time is only 2-3 weeks 😦

5) When planting a peony, you have to make sure not to plant too shallow or too deep. If planting a bare root peony, make sure the eyes are about an inch below ground level. This is important!

6) If a peony doesn’t do well one year, consider digging up and relocating in the fall.

That is about all I know. So now I have 4 thriving plants and 2 not so thriving. In the fall I will relocate the ones that will not bloom this year. I think they are not getting enough sun.

When you have a happy plant, you will be rewarded with huge, fluffy and fragrant blooms. I like to fill my vases up and put them all over the house. I’ve brought some into work and so many people have oohed and aahed over them. But the secret is that I put minimum work in… I just found a good spot.

Another secret: the year I went crazy for peonies, I did invest in a huge and healthy one. But the others I purchased when the blooms were done and the plants were looking a little sad. They were 50% off. I stuck them in the ground and watered them a few times a week. I cut the foliage to the ground in the fall and the next year they responded with lush foliage and fluffy blooms.

Let me know if you want to talk about peonies!