Agentsherry

Actually the fernleaf peony is easy. But beware. People call a lot of different peonies fernleaf. My first fernleaf that I recieved was Smouthii which is a fernleaf hybrid. Fernleaf hybrids look quiet different from the true fernleaf peonies.

For a beginner I would suggest you get Paeonia tenuifolia rubra plena flore. This is the double flowering fernleaf peony, it is one of the easiest, the foliage is the most fernlike, almost feathery, and it makes a great show of color in the very early spring. The color of this peony is Lipstick Red. It is also the most available of the true fernleaf peonies.

The fernleaf peony only has a few requirements and if those are met it will be happy. If it is happy it will multiply fast and make a nice plant. This plant seems to appreciate dividing every few years.

The requirements include:
1) Good soil, I use a good bit of compost in my soil and I have not had trouble with botrytis (a leafage desease caused by fungii).

2) Constant soil moisture that first summer. Dont let the soil get to dry. You don't want to overwater either.

3) Relatively dry soil during the winter. I use raised beds. The bed is about 8 inches higher than the surrounding ground. This allows for fast drainage after a rain. Wet feet in the winter is a surefire way to kill a fernleaf peony.

4) Divide and plant only in the fall. The plants go dormant early perhaps in July or the first of August. I have one location that summer moisture is constant at the base of a retaining wall that get morning sun only. This plant keeps foliage until the first of October. You can dig the plant and divide after it goes dormant. The first year they go dormant very early, perhaps even early June but you should not try to dig and divide the first year.

Even a very small root can generate a plant. Even a root without a bud is capable of becoming a plant. They can generate buds adventitiously(the buds generated in places they should not be produced).

Try to plant as soon as possible after dividing. You don't want the roots to dry out.

The link that I have posted at the bottom of this post is a bit technical but has some good information.

Good luck growing fern leaf peonies

Here is a link that might be useful: Fern leaf peonies. Paeonia tenuifolia

I did exactly what I was told in planting, also adding a little compost. Didn't over water and made sure it was watered enough. It has turned brown. Even the stalk is brown.....Very little green left. What did I do wrong? Can I save it at this point????? Please help.....

You did nothing wrong. Fernleafs go brown early. They flower early also. Generally one of the first to bloom. With the odd weather many people have been having a lot of peonies are going dormant early. Look at other peony plants you will start seeing some of them turning brown. Some will maintain the green until freeze then they are really brown.

So do I continue to water and so forth, even though it's brown? Should I be cutting it down or wait? It's still very hot here, in the high 80's and low 90's this week. It rained 3 inches over the weekend. Thanks for the info....

That is how they are. Leave it alone or cut dead foliage if it bothers you. In absence of the leaves watering become pointless, but for the first year planting I'd still keep soil SLIGHTLY moist till fall.
Next year it will do the same thing, but then you may simply disregard it. They are the simpliest to maintain plants you could imagine.

Just a suggestion for the fernleafs. Once the plants go dormant it is hard to locate them. To avoid digging by accident put a marker or a large can with both ends cut out arround the plant. Not very attractive unless you decorate but a lot better than digging up a plant you like.

Alternatively to maifleur's suggestion you may plant few bulbs of muscari around the peony and use them as a markers.
Muskari will bloom in a spring before peonies, but they are sending up new leaves at this time of the year, so you'll know not to plant anything there.

Any suggestions of what to plan by my fern peony I have it in a raised planter. I would like some color after it is done blooming.

My companion plants are day lilys and hydrangea (mostly hydrangea). When the peony start to fade the hydrangea are just getting started in bloom.

Our fern peony is about 3 years old and gets buds, but they do not open into flowers. Does it require more sun? My plant is on the east side of our garage.

My fern peony blooms with one blossom and lasts about 3 days but is oh so pretty! Can I get more blooms...do you know?
Smiles,
D...