Peony – planting and care

Scientific name (Latin): Paeonia

Family: Peony family (Paeoniaceae)

Peonies can be planted year-round, but the most favorable time for planting is in the fall. In Norway, October is generally the best time for planting, while late August and early September are more suitable for Central Norway.

Once winter arrives and temperatures drop, it's better to wait until spring to plant, unless you already have the peonies at home. In such cases, it's always better to plant, even if the conditions aren't ideal, as peonies need a warm period followed by cold to break seed dormancy.

Before winter, it can also be wise to protect the peonies with a layer of mulch or dry leaves, which you can secure with pine branches. This helps the shallow-rooted plants withstand the cold.

• It's nice to mix in some other perennials with the peonies, such as lady's mantle, lavender, columbine, and delphinium.
  
• Bulb flowers that bloom as early as March and April bring life to the flower bed before the peonies arrive with their beautiful blooms.

All peonies belong to the genus Paeonia, which is divided into three main categories: tree peonies, herbaceous peonies, and hybrids.

• Tree Peonies
  Tree peonies, which originate from China, are also known as tree peonies. They are woody, meaning they have a stem that is woody on the inside and covered with bark on the outside. In addition, they are deciduous. There is a wide variety of tree peonies, and their flowers can be white, pink, yellow, or red. Under favorable conditions, tree peonies can grow over 2 meters tall. Among the more well-known species are the purple-spotted tree peony, red small shrub peony, and yellow small shrub peony.
  
• Herbaceous Peonies
  Herbaceous peonies come from Europe and Asia, or from western North America. In Europe, you can find the dill peony, in Asia the scented peony, and in western North America, there are Paeonia brownii and Paeonia californica. There is ongoing debate about whether these last two species should belong to the hellebore genus, Helleborus, rather than the peony genus. These two species are grown on a very limited scale. As for peonies in Asia and Europe, there are also several cultivated hybrids.
  
• Hybrids
  Today, most peonies are hybrids, meaning they are crosses between different wild species. The most commonly used wild species are the rock peony and the scented peony. In Norway, for example, we have the farmer's peony, also called the "pauper's rose," which is a hybrid between the rock peony and the Turkish peony. It has been cultivated in Norway for a long time and is almost considered an old cultural variety.

The popular peony 'Sarah Bernhardt'.

The peony has been cultivated both as an ornamental plant and for its properties as a versatile medicinal herb. As an ornamental plant, it became popular in the Nordic countries in the 17th century, but already by the end of the Middle Ages, it was used for medicinal purposes. Since antiquity, various parts of the peony, such as peony roots, peony vinegar, peony water, and peony seeds, have been used – primarily to treat epilepsy.

Fill half of the pot with a compost mix made of equal parts garden compost and sharp sand. Then add a layer of peat. After that, add soil in which you can sow the seeds. Finally, fill the pot with sand or soil.

Before planting peony tubers, you need to prepare your bed.

1. Find a sunny spot and dig an area that is 40–50 cm deep and equally wide.
2. Mix some bone meal into the soil for better long-term effect.
3. Avoid fertilizing directly next to the plants, but feel free to add some well-rotted manure around them.
4. Place the peony tubers about 5–6 cm below the soil surface, ensuring that the "eyes" face upward. Make sure to plant the tuber so that all parts are planted at about the same depth.
5. If you are planting multiple peonies in a group, a spacing of about 80–100 cm between the plants is ideal. If you are planting perennials instead, you can space them 100–150 cm apart.
6. Ensure good drainage around the plants so that they don't become waterlogged over an extended period.

Once the peonies are planted and have started to grow, it is best to leave them where they are. They may stop blooming for a while if they are moved, although they will not be harmed in any way. Instead, you can divide the plant and replant the sections. Dig up the root ball to possibly divide it. Make sure there are "eyes," meaning buds, on each section. Let it dry a little before replanting it in the new spot. The best time for this is in the fall.

• They grow from 60 cm to 2.5 meters tall.
• The flowers vary in size, ranging from 4 cm to 20 cm, and sometimes they can even be larger.
• Peonies have five different flower types: single, semi-double, double, Japanese, and anemone-flowered.
• The plant has thick, tuber-like roots.
• The genus includes the farmer's peony, tree peony, dill peony, coral peony, scented peony, rose peony, and silk peony.
• The peony stores nutrients in its large rootstocks during the summer.

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