I would wait b/c you sure are mighty far north and most of my friends up there are at least a week behind schedule with their plants and particularly the leafing out of trees. I'd hold out some hope :)

I agree with jqpublic. I would also wait. All of my peonies are peeking out with the exception of one and as hard as it is I am going to wait until another couple of weeks. We are definately behind in the season. All of my eyes have popped up a week or two late.

One peony had PM two years and I immediatedly cut off the offending areas and threw them away (DO NOT COMPOST THEM, you will only creats havoc in your yard if you do). Last year they came back and they were beautiful without any signs of PM.

Peonies are really hardy plants, try waiting and it will probably be worth it. Good luck!

I have a Tree Peony that is showing no sign of growth. I checked some of the buds - they appear dry and lifeless. I wonder if it was killed off with the weather? I'm in RI.

You really think there is still some hope? I'm crossing fingers, but it looks truly dead.

(Last year it was a gorgeous, lush, healthy little tree without any signs of disease).

bartamy, I find that some tp's especially the Chinese ones will die back the first year or two completely to the ground. With patience and leaving them alone they may come back. Plant an annual or two around to diguise the bare stems and wait until next year to see if there is growth. No not, do not cut the stems off. When I have done this even with the new growth the whole plant will then die within a short period of time. I have no idea what cutting off the apparently dead stems has but I have noticed this each time I have cut. If your plant survives, the dead stems will rot and become loose in the soil. You can safely remove them at that time.

Yes, do wait a while longer.
Its funny, I have 7 peonies....5 of them most recent given to me by a brother-in-law....now in 3 years.

All 6 of my peonies are up...one of the most recent, up almost two feet....yet the oldest one, the one that's been there for 13 years is just now poking its head up, right next to an oriental poppy. I put it down to possibly too much mulch there...possibly too much moisture retention.
Anyway, I'm happy they're all coming back.

Oh - ye are very wise!!! All three peonies are now growing - they weren't dead at all. I am so happy because they are so beautiful and so easy to care for. They bring back memories of my childhood in the Midwest. Thanks for your wise advice.

Not wise been arround a little longer.

Congrats :)

I have had my two peonies in the same place for many years and they come up almost together each spring. One is all the way up and setting buds but nothing coming up from the other one. We had tons of snow here in Virginia this winter but the temps were not worse than usual. Both my peonies' leaves had what I believe was white powdery mildew after they bloomed last year and thats the first time. They are in full sun.

I am very upset as the one that did not come up was handed down from my grandmother to my mom to me. The blooms are huge double pinks that smell heavenly.

I am going to dig it up and see what it looks like underneath but wanted to see if anyone had any advice?

Tx

Terri

Since I posted that original message in 2007, I have moved the peonies, gone through several weird winters, etc. The peonies have had some mildew off and on. This has not seemed to stunt their growth.Once or twice I poured soapy water on the plant with the mildew. They bloom well almost every year. Nothing is really hindering them. One of the three plants is up out of the ground about 8 inches - the other two are a little slower. Have patience - they will come back as they are hardy plants.

Terri I would wait a while before performing a postmortem on your non responsive peony. Peony have large reserves of energy and it might survive and appear next year. If you have more mildew problems do not let it get a foothold, fightback at the first indication. Al