Many peonies need several years to hit their stride. Time will cure that. Hopefully this year or next you will begin to see an improvement.

On the other hand, how deep did you plant the peonies? Were the bud "eyes" planted about 1 in. below the soil line--or no more than 2 in. below the soil line? If you planted them deeper, they will have blooming problems and might need to be re-planted higher up.

As to smell, I'm not sure all peonies feature fragrance. And ants aren't essential for bloom, so I wouldn't worry about that.

Maybe someone else will have some other advice.

Kate

Do any of your neighbors grow peonies? That might tell you something.

I don't know for sure about this, but it is something to consider at any rate.

Hope you can grow them--they are so gorgeous.

Kate

I can't answer your question about your bloom problem, but I can tell you that peonies DO grow in Zone 7. I grew them without a problem when I lived in NC, and they're all over my new neighborhood in VA (still zone 7). I brought four with me, and only one bloomed this year...I'm hoping it's just a matter of the plants getting adjusted to their new home. A peony that I got from my ex-husband's parents' house many years ago took at least three years to bloom after I planted it in my garden. Could be that's all that's wrong with your plants...Good luck!

I may be a tenderfoot and new to most gardening. But I have grown heirloom peonies for years with great success in zone 7. I just stuck the root cutting in my MD clay soil and it has bloomed and expanded. the plant needs to be divided periodically. it will get crowded and get a leaf fungus.
The first year or two, or even three, it may not bloom, because of disturbance, so you have to be patient. and it's usually well worth the wait!

They bloom in May here in zone 7.

They like full sun! Watering recommended. Trim off the blooms when they die off. In the fall (about October in zone 7), trim the foliage to leave about 4 inches of stem. Mulch for protection over the winter.

for replanting, plant shallow but still covered. as Kate said above, the eyes do need to be covered, but not too deep.

As for the small blooms, could be the variety. there are over 300 prize varieties that were grown on a property nearby me.

As for ANTS - they do absolutely NOTHING to help or hurt the plant. It's a myth that that ants are needed to open the buds. they just like the sticky, sweet coating. and they do not harm the blooms at all.

Good luck, be patient!

K

After having said that I have had success in growing peonies from root cuttings and splitting, does anyone know if peonies can be successfully grown from seed? and how?

here's where my "tenderfoot" comes in - I only know about my 2 successes. and I am now grateful to my new MAG friends for starting me out with new ventures.

Thanks,
K

Curious because I like to visit peony plantings are the peonies you mentioned above in a public or private garden? If public could I have name and city to add to my list.

Currently, what is left of the original prize garden is located at Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg, MD, so that is public. As I said, they bloom in May, now at different stages.

Unfortunately, when the Park acquired the property in 1963, they were unable to give the gardens the same degree of maintenance of the original prize gardener.

There is a small garden patch where many of the varieties have been preserved, maintained by park volunteers. There is a field, not maintained, and :( :( , has been used as a parking lot for a once-a-year park event, but mowed in the Spring for walking paths, when the plants bloom.

Anyway, beautiful, but small.

bummer about growing from seeds. I have a really beautiful cut bloom from a friend of mine, and was hoping to try and grow from the seeds.

Thanks,
K

Sometime the plants from seed are better than the parent plants some times worse. I you friend allows the seed pods to stay on an ripen you can try growing. Seed pods split when ripe.