Old peonies, the buds die before opening....why?

I bought a house with peonies in front.... every year, they bud and then the buds die. The foliage is fine, but I rarely get blossoms. I am in an older neighborhood with lots of big old lilacs, peonies, yucca, and stonecrop. Other plants in the same flower bed are fine. Do plants like this have a life span where they no longer blossom? Is there anything I can give them?

Old peonies, the buds die before opening....why?
i was readin about this a few days ago. I work at Home Depot and I was reading a book about flower illnesses and one of them was about flowers dying before they bloom but having great foliage. There's something wrong with the soil. I can't remember off the top of my head but there's too much of some chemical. If you live near a home depot, call and ask to speak to their flower specialist (every store is supposed to have one) and ask them specifically what to do or email me and I'll look it up when i go to work tomorrow.
Reply:I never prune the buds off of mine and they bloom fine. Some recommend cutting of the smaller buds on each stem, leaving the larger one. Two of the problems you might be having is the crowns are planted too deep (should only be about 2 inches deep) and your plants aren't getting enough sunlight. They need about 6 hours of direct sun. Though there are exceptions to this rule. Mine are in shade most of the day and bloom fine. One year mine didn't bloom very well. I divided them in the fall. They bloomed the next year but it was few blooms on the plants. But they made up for it the following year and have been blooming fine since. My peonies are about 30 years old.
Reply:You have to prune the first buds off for the rest of them to thrive.
Reply:You need ants. They are the only reason peony buds open up. Come to my house, I'll give you as many as you want! I've got a whole colony living outside... and I don't have peonies!
Reply:I have some peonies which did the same thing, and they aren't that old. I mowed them off with the lawn mower after blooming season and it helped in the following years. It didn't end the problem COMPLETELY, but it helped tremendously. (I don't mow them anymore, I just did it the one year)
Reply:You should divide them. If this doesn't work, mow them down. Be patient, they are resilient. They will come back next year.
Reply:Don't divide them! Peonies rarely need dividing and don't usually appreciate it. I have no idea what the problem is, but it almost certainly will not be solved by division.
Reply:you can buy special plant food for them, but ants are what cause them to open. The flowers have a sticky substance on the buds that ants like so they crawl on the flowers eat the goo and then the flowers can open. Maybe the plant is getting too much shade. Peonies are beautiful so good luck trying to help your along
Reply:You need to cut them back when the leaves begin to fade, all the way to the ground. That should make them flower the next season.
Reply:Peonies need ants! Ants crawl all over them and somehow this affects their ability to bloom. So, don't spray for ants around your peony bushes, or they won't bloom.





Take a look at other peony bushes that are about to bloom and you'll see a lot of ants on the buds!