Planting & Care Instructions

You have purchased a tree peony either in a pot or bare-root.  Now you are wondering how to plant them and care for them.

Potted:

If you have bought a potted tree peony, you can plant them immediately.  When you take your tree peony out of the pot, be careful not to shake loose any of the growing medium surrounding the roots of the plant.  The growing medium must be kept in contact with the roots.  

Make sure the site you select for your plant is well drained.  Nothing will kill a tree peony faster than standing water.  Your tree peony needs at least 4 hours of a sun a day.  Keep in mind that during the winter months, you want to protect it from bitter winds by placing a barrier in front of it, either a bale of hay or some other mechanism. Dig your hole to that is approximately 3-4 inches deeper than the point of where the roots meet the stems.  Any kind of neutral pH balanced soil will work.  Cover the plant so that the soil comes up 2 inches above where the roots and stems meet. Press firmly on the soil to eliminate air pockets.  Mulch around the plant so that you create a mound so water does not stand. Water thoroughly.

Bare Root:

Bare rooted plants should be planted in the fall.  Before planting bare root plants, soak them in any commercial root stimulator.  Read the package of your root stimulator to see how long and in what dilution if any.  After soaking, you may plant your tree peony.  Follow instructions of the above potted plants.

Caring for your tree peony

Your tree peony is hardy plant, but some care is required.  The first spring after you transplant your tree peony, your plant should show flower buds.  It is better to not let your tree peony bloom its first year.  This will allow the plant to spend more energy rooting and producing foliage.  The following year, you can let your plant bloom as much as it wants to.

You should fertilize your plant twice a year.  Fertilize once in the spring when growth begins to show.  Fertilize again after the flowers drop.  You can use any kind of time release fertilizer or 10-10-10 or 20-20-20 water soluble fertilizer. We recommend that you use a low-nitrogen, high-phosphorous fertilizer.  You can use bone meal, fish meal, and other natural products as well.  

It is not necessary to prune, however, you will want to cut away any dead stems in the following years.  Our tree peonies are divisions, therefore there is no need to worry about herbaceous root suckers.  

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