Friday, November 18, 2011

Peony question?

Forgive what is a fantastically stupid question. Peonies - I know there are tree peonies and I'm assuming there are other types too. What I need to know is how they reproduce. Seeds, bulbs, tubers, what? Any explicitly helpful links would be extremely well-received.





Wouldn't normally take so lazy a way out of my own research needs, but the web generally seems a little reluctant to give up its peony secrets...:o)


Thanks folks.

Peony question?
The most common are these two kinds of peonies, Tree peonies (Paeonia suffruticosa) and Herbaceous peonies syn. Chinese peonies (Paeonia lactiflora). Tree peonies are perennial shrubs and herbaceous peonies are perennial herbs.





In nature, tree peonies would propagate themselves by seeds and herbaceous peonies by seeds and spreading their clumps. Herbeceous peonies produce "eyes" on their roots. When the plant would be divided, those eyes are separated and will produce a new plant. If left alone, the clump will spread.





Here are some helpful links:





http://www.paeonia.com/html/peonies/prop...





http://www.paeonia.com/html/peonies/abou...





http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_...





Hope this helps some. Good luck. :)
Reply:Peonies are fun because they are soooo durable and versatile! You will find that your shrub will grow via tubers each year. When you have a mature plant you can dig it up in the fall and separate the tubers into small pieces and replant. Remember not to plant too deep. Your mother plant will appreciate the effort as they like to be separated every few years. You will quickly have a full, lovely peony bed!





Visit with your friends and neighbors. It is fun to divide and exchange for variety.





Have fun.
Reply:Go to the peony forum on gardenweb.com they can help you alot
Reply:All previous answers are good, just remember when dividing the Peony to have at least two eyes on each tuber





The eyes are where you can see the growth on the tuber





I plant Clematis in between mine so that after the Peony finishes flowering the Clematis will take over and you will have a another showing of flowers





You will get more flowers if planted in full sun





Have fun
Reply:Peonies are members of the ranunculae or buttercup family. they come in two basic forms woody and and herbaceous.They are incredibly long lived, I know of some plants that are 50 plus years old.The best way to get a start is to divide a root in the fall for the herbaceous types, tree types are best bought at a nursery(their blooms can be huge).The plants produce seeds which can be a challenge to the most seasoned of gardeners to achieve germination. Other members of the clan include anemones, columbine, buttercups,hellebores,delphiniums ...it's a rich tableau.


To germinate a peony seed nick the seed coat and pre-chill (Packed in moist sawdust or sphagnum moss in a zip-lock bag )for 6 weeks or so.There are auxins out there which can increase germination, gibberillic acid is probably the best.I personally have had luck with a 1% solution of hydrogen peroxide(dilute regular 3% solution 2 to 1)This is not strong enough to harm anything,but it puts one available oxygen atom in there for every hundred water molecules.Dont get in a hurry,and dont throw the seeds away for maybe two years.Good luck
Reply:As far as I understand it, all peonies are basically shrubs, but the breed as well as your location will dictate how large they get. You can grow them from tubers, or crowns,which sort of look like ginger or you can buy mini plants all over in thre springtime. Any garden center, even home depot should have them now. They're really gorgeous flowers and when they're done blooming the foliage is still pretty.


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