PERENNIALS > paeony > PRUNING

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PEONY GUIDES

pink flowering peonies growing in grass outside in a field

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Peonies are wide-ranging and pop garden plants which can really tot up a lot of interest and drama to your garden .

However , to make the most of these plants , you take to care for them right .

pink flowering peony bush that has been pruned into a round shape growing outside on a lawn in front of a road

With herbaceous and intersectional peonies , it is a good idea to remove all stems and foliage to terra firma storey as soon as the leaf has kick the bucket back in the fall .

This can reduce the hazard of peony wilting disease and aid to ensure that your paeony can grow back strongly the undermentioned saltation .

The process of pruning peonies of these type is very uncomplicated :

peony stems being cut down to the soil by secateurs

We discuss this in more detail in the rest of the article .

Pruning Herbaceous & Intersectional Peonies

Pruning of these peony takes position in the fall after any bud removal and deadheading have taken place throughout the season .

It is usually good to wait until after the first few touches of hoar when the foliage is dying back naturally .

However , you may sometimes disregard back earlier if your plant life shows signs of disease .

dead flower heads from a peony plant being cut off by a pair of secateurs

1) Wait For Foliage To Die Back

It is unremarkably important to look for the foliage on your paeony to die back course before you dilute it back to the ground .

If you edit it back too too soon , the plant life will not have been able-bodied to store enough energy through photosynthesis to turn and flower well the undermentioned year .

2) Cut Off Stems And Dead Foliage

“ In autumn , cut the foliation from your paeony at around 4 inches above the soil level , ” says Koen Hurtekart , founder of The Peony Society .

“ Research has found that this lead in low numbers of botrytis infections amongst peony plants . ”

To do this , take a clean , sharp pair of secateurs or some gardening shear and trim off all the drained / dying plant fabric as close to the background as potential .

a pink flowering peony shrub being deadheaded by a pair of gardening scissors

This is a good idea because the fabric may harbor invisible fungal spores and diseases which could affect the plant the next year .

“ Mulching around the industrial plant after cutting back can help oneself to reduce the spread of fungous spore from rainfall splash , ” shares Master Horticulturist Colin Skelly .

“ Wood chip is particularly effective for this but be careful not to bury the diadem . ”

“ Never pull out the old stems out , as you might also deplume out the new bud which produce alongside them , ” warns Koen .

3) Get Rid of All Plant Debris

Even where the cloth does not face infected , it is salutary to be assiduous in remove all the dead material from the area around the works to reduce the peril of any diseases like peony wilt take hold .

It is unspoilt not to compost this material as invisible fungal spores might pass around through your composting system to other voice of your garden .

“ Do n’t hoe around the peony as you will destroy the feeder roots , ” explains Kate Blacker , the proprietor of Little Budds Peony Farm .

Pruning Tree Peonies

Note that these pruning guidelines apply to herbaceous and intersectional peony types .

Tree peonies have unlike attention guidelines .

With tree diagram peonies , you will typically only need to do minor pruning – deadheading bloom and removing any stagnant , discredited or diseased branches .