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jannabeen

humongous size, few blooms

jannabeen
16 years ago

I moved a peony several years ago. It sulked for a while but this season it just grew and grew. It's three times its previous size but there's few blooms:

The peony next to it is just loaded with buds, although it's a different variety:

A peony of what must be the same variety that is located elsewhere (but same orientation) has maintained a reasonable size and it putting out a show:

Is there any way to get a peony to stay a "normal" size? What's up with the paltry blooms?

Many thanks for any advice.

Comments (9)

  • maifleur01
    16 years ago

    In the first picture you have a rose next to your peony. What if anything have you benn feeding the rose. If a folar feed or higher first number the peony will grow nice leaves but fewer flowers.

    Just a fyi, a normal size for a peony can be 8 inches to 5 feet. You just need to pick the correct cultivar for what you consider normal sized.

  • carol_the_dabbler
    16 years ago

    Also, I've heard that if you plant a peony too deep, it will "come up blind" (i.e., fail to bloom). This warning is usually given as regards planting a peony root, but could presumably apply to a transplant as well, if you set it deeper than it was in its previous location.

  • northerner_on
    16 years ago

    Jannabeen: I think this is the way with Peonies. They do not like to be moved and if you do move them you will suffer. I am having the same experience with some I moved in Fall 2003. They grew a little larger each year, and last year one plant gave me one bloom, the others had buds, but they did not develop. This year, the plants are large, with few beautiful blooms. The plants in my back border,which have been there for over 23 years, produce large numbers of blooms each year like clockwork, like the ones in your second photo. I think we will be rewarded next year.

  • mjsee
    16 years ago

    Also--Down here we lost a number of peony blooms to the Easter Freeze. May not be a factor up where you are...

    I'll second the "what are you feeding that rose."

  • jannabeen
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    I don't feed the rose anything -- it's a rugosa, so it (supposedly) doesn't like/need "food". The huge peony has a lot of wannabe buds that never make it to maturity. Maybe a few more years before it's really settled in?

    Also, is it OK to prune it down after blooming? All I normally do is trim off the spent stems, but because this bush is so big, I'd like to give it a real haircut.

  • jayco
    16 years ago

    I think it varies from plant to plant. I have two of the same variety right next to each other: this year, one has about forty buds, the other has four.

  • tooslim
    16 years ago

    The number 1 reason for no blooms in this area is buried too deep, whether bareroot or when transplanting. In our area, the eyes have to be kept right at or just below soil level. And fertilize in the early spring with super phosphate. That's what brings blooms.

  • whynotmi
    16 years ago

    I'm having the same issue with one of my peonies. Feeding consists only of side dressing with compost 2x/year. The plant has been in place for 20+ years and bloomed beautifully until about 3 years ago. It started to get many undeveloped buds at that time. Now it only gets maybe 4 buds but they do manage to bloom. My next door neighbor is finding that hers aren't blooming the way they used to either. Any thoughts?

  • mjsee
    16 years ago

    Do you know what kind of soil you have? Here in Chapel Hill, NC, our (unamended)soil is pretty much universally lacking in phosphorous. I add rock phosphate to every planting hole. I know it's an important nutrient for root development and bloom development...

    Perhaps you should have a soil test done.

    THAT said--I moved a peony that wasn't getting enough sun and it sulked this spring. Four blooms.

    melanie