I am making no promises if you live on the top of the Pennines, or beside the sea!, but these are generally the best As long as a few rules are followed they are easy to grow and once established will live for many years with little attention. Produced by the Department of Communications at Kansas State University. … The best time of year for transplanting peonies is September through the fall. If you are planting tree or woody peonies (such as P. delavayii) the eyes should be at least 7cm (3 inches) below the soil surface. Each division should have at least 3 eyes for it to stand a chance of flowering next year. Moving established plants is a simple procedure. Like Oriental poppies or Siberian irises, they rarely require dividing; but if you want to break a mature plant into several smaller ones or to move an existing plant, the work is best done in late summer or early fall. More on growing peonies: 20 beautiful peonies to grow Peonies should be grown in a reasonably rich, well-drained soil. However there might be a time when they might need moving or dividing. Step by step instructions would be a HUGE help! Trim away foliage to prepare the plant for new blooms. Large, vigorous peonies can be dug and divided for propagation purposes. It is easy to slice away and end up with eyes and no roots. It does not matter if the thick roots snap in half as it won’t hurt the plant, but try to lift as much of it out of the ground as possible. The best time is in late summer and autumn. If they are planted at the wrong depth they may fail to bloom or at the very least take years to flower. This can be any time from October to February. And, fall is the best time to divide or transplant peonies to share with other family members and neighbors. Late summer or autumn dug and replanted into moist soil your peony will get off to a normal growth cycle, quickly starting new root growth upon declining soil temperatures. Use a … Herbaceous peonies can be propagated by division in autumn, while tree peonies are better propagated by layering. September is the best time to divide peonies. With luck and a bit of practice you will be able to divide the plant into some nice pieces ready for planting. The best time for propagating peonies is in autumn, after plants have become dormant. Moving And Dividing Peonies. Firstly, we promise not to bombard you with emails, we know how that feels and we hate it! This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Garden compost that is not fully broken down can cause a peony to rot. Peonies are tolerant plants. At that time they are dormant or going into dormancy, enabling you to have easily cared for replant material freshly fortified with stored food. In the fall, the peony’s leaves will turn brown … Use a sharp spade to dig beneath the peony clump. Using a sharp knife, divide the clump into sections. Dividing Peonies . Dividing Peonies in Spring Peonies can be … Bookmark. Peonies in partial shade need to be moved to a sunny location to improve flowering. "The right time to divide peonies is in the fall," says Rogers. Moving and dividing peonies should be done in autumn once the leaves have died back. This is a selection of great garden peonies which are either shorter growing, or have particularly robust habits and stems that would not normally need staking, even in an exposed garden. Peonies Are Perfect For Busy PeopleOnce Planted They Require Almost No AttentionLonglived And … This takes time and while it may be tempting to purchase a smaller, cheaper plant and wait for it to grow, my advice is to buy a well established peony, one that is at least 3-5 years old or more, to be sure of success in your garden. :) Post #5143643. The ideal time to divide peonies is in the fall. Dig a hole wide enough and deep enough to accommodate the roots of the peony. You may choose to divide your herbaceous peonies if they are no longer thriving, if the site has become shady, if you want more, and (best of all) if you want to share with friends and family. "By that time they've finished their year's growth and have started to go dormant." We will use the newsletter to occasionally send out news which you might be interested in, such as an update of the varieties we stock, notification of the dates for our field open days, or the publication of one of our catalogues. Insert your shovel into the soil just beyond the outermost leaves of the clump. Plants transplanted in the fall will have plenty of time to establish their roots and still produce Mid-September to early October is the best time to transplant peonies. Plants may need to be moved to a different location when redesigning a perennial bed or border. Despite also producing short woody stems this rule also applies to Intersectional peonies. When is the best time to divide peonies? Dig a generous-sized … Peonies are a little different from most perennials in this regard. Peonies grow well in Kansas, and will flourish with very little care. This is not something the gardener need worry about, but if your peony is too big for the spot it is growing in, or you want to give someone a piece of it, or perhaps you are moving home and you don’t want to leave your precious plant behind - don’t worry it can be lifted and divided. Peonies are perfect for busy people. The redesign of a perennial bed or border may require moving the peonies. Large, vigorous plants can be dug and divided for propagation purposes. This is simple. Peonies shaded by large trees or shrubs should be moved to a sunny site to improve flowering. How do I go about it? Your email address will not be published. Spring-divided plants tend to really suffer. You will want to make sure each piece has at least one crown bud. Peonies like full sun, and though they can manage with half a day, they bloom best in a sunny spot. They reach up to 20cm (8in) across. Divide summer-flowering plants in spring (Mar-May) or autumn (Sep-Nov) when the soil is dry enough to work. Firstly dig the plant out of the ground. September and October are the best months for dividing peonies, after the long, sunny days of summer have supplied the plants with plenty of sunshine to recharge their food reserves underground. These peonies have three to five eyes, and are divisions of a three- or four-year-old plant. It's also the best time to plant new varieties. The best time of year for dividing and transplanting peonies is early fall. This family does divide quite well if you are careful, and just after flowering is a good time to carry this out, while you can still remember exactly what colour they are! Now is a good time to divide peonies. This can be a blessing or a curse! Tackle dividing peonies in summer, and you risk interrupting the production of the plant’s internal food stores that fuel next year’s growth and blooming. Moving and dividing peonies should be done in autumn once the leaves have died back. Your email address will not be published. Herbaceous peonies - the ones that die right back in autumn - should be planted with the eyes no more than 3cm (1 inch) below the soil surface. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Using a large, sturdy knife or pair of secateurs insert the tip of the blade around the top of the plant and carefully slice downwards. Though we love our Perennials, Irises and Peonies, we know these are useful in the garden too! Ticker Lisbon, IA(Zone 5a) Jun 22, 2008. Although peonies do not require regular division, when they begin to overtake an area or you find them growing in too much shade, it is time to move them. Perfect Timing Everything has its season and for dividing perennials, that season is fall. The eyes are next years leaf shoots and this is where you need to aim for when splitting the plant apart. Long-lived and extremely beautiful when in flower even the foliage is handsome. Granted it might take three years or so to settle down properly, but depending on the size of the division it is possible to have flowers the following season. Sometimes we need to find our plants a new home in our garden. I always cut the leaves off mine in the depths of winter in order to show off the flowers when they arrive and remove any risk of the dreaded black spot. Q: My peonies have overgrown their space. Just to make it quite clear, we do not share information with anyone else. Peonies for an Exposed Garden. A: Fall is the best time to divide and transplant peonies. However, division is most successful when the plants are not in active growth. Dividing peonies may be done any time the plants are dormant, although the best time of year is in the fall. I always thought that herbaceous peonies were sulky movers and difficult to split, hence the spenny price tag. For the most part, transplanting peonies is a job that doesn't usually need done for 10 to 15 years. Then quite by accident one day I split a peony with my clumsy fork-work, didn’t even realise I had done it and was … Depending on its age, you might need a fork or a spade. How to divide a peony. Herbaceous peonies have single or double bowl-shaped flowers in white, cream, pink, yellow and red. The bigger the plant the better so try for 5 to 8 eyes. Place the plant in the hole - following the rule below - and cover with soil. Learn how your comment data is processed. Cut thepeony stems near ground level in September. Once it is out of the ground, blast it with water from a hose pipe to clear away the soil. under the soil or they … This can be any time from October to February. The most garden-worthy are the Paeonia lactiflora varieties. Glenda, you divide peony in the fall of the year. Quote. To simulate the foliage dying back in the fall, we cut the foliage back to the soil line. When to Divide Daylilies Daylilies require division every three to six years or when the clumps become crowded and the plants begin flowering poorly. Time to Divide Your Peonies! If you have been moving things around in your garden and have some peonies, you might wonder if you find the little tubers left behind, can you plant them and expect them to grow. Make sure the buds on the pieces are not more than 2 inches (5 cm.) If you want, you can divide the rest of them now, too. Spring is also better suited to plants that are a touch tender Once planted they require almost no attention. By September, peony plants have been able to store adequate food reserves in their roots for the following year. In wet autumns, delay until spring. Starting from the eyes and seek out the ones with most root attached. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. Things we like in the home and garden and we thought you might like too, A few things that we find useful in the garden. Clip leafy stems back to almost ground level and 2 to 3 inches tall. The best time of year for transplanting peonies is September. Using a sharp spade, dig beneath the peony clump about 18 inches away from the plant’s crown and stems. However, at least one will do. Also, the replanted divisions have several weeks to get reestablished at their new sites before the … Here’s how you do it. Clip leafy stems back to near ground level, 2" to 3" tall. Required fields are marked *. It is likely that you will not get all the plant out of the ground. This work should be done in the fall while or after the plant goes into dormancy for the winter. The procedure for dividing peonies is very simple. You will continue to divide peonies until you have as many peonies as you can get from the roots you originally dug up. Peonies divided in … Carefully dig up the plants and wash or gently shake off the soil. They also prefer a position in full sun, but I have a peony ‘Shirley Temple’ that thrives in part shade, so this rule can be broken. Clip leafy stems back to near ground level—2 to 3 inches tall. The best time to move or divide peonies is September. How Do You Dig Up Peonies? To divide peonies, begin by cutting the peony stems near ground level. Best Time To Divide Peonies Moving And Dividing Peonies. Thanks for the help!! Scented & great for cutting, Ideal for anyone who is not sure what to order. Plant the pieces in a location suitable for growing peonies. Peonies take time to mature and you must therefore be patient. September is the best time to transplant established peonies. If you dig some of them up to share with your daughter-in-law, you’ll be dividing those particular plants. I've joined a few peony groups on Facebook in the last few weeks and it's been enlightening. Firstly dig the plant out of the ground. The procedure for dividing peonies is simple, best done when the plant is dormant. There are two methods to divide a peony: 'pie-slice' and 'whole-plant'. Peonies Are Perfect For Busy PeopleOnce Planted They Require Almost No AttentionLonglived And Extremely Beautiful When In Flower Even The Foliage I... Purple Fountain Grass Perennial Or Annual. Rogers then recommends removing all the soil from the roots and giving them a good soaking with the hose. This will help you to find the pink ‘eyes’, or leaf buds. Three visible crown buds is best. When to move and divide a peony. Depending on its age, you might need a fork or a … If your soil is poor it helps to dig in some VERY well rotted compost. When can I divide them? The blooms are either loosely crammed with petals or more open, but are often spicily scented. Easy to grow, colourful and really varied, Big, blowsy & beautiful. You will find that peonies with bulbous roots such as Paeonia officinalis types will regrow if some root is left in the ground. If I were you I'd do it in September. Despite the gardening myth that peonies cannot be moved, we replant our crop of peonies every few years to prevent the plants becoming too large as this makes them difficult to lift. Peonies should be settled into place before the first hard frost. We often use a mini-digger! Firstly take a good look at your lifted plant.