I have a peony, pink in colour, can't remember the name. It was given to me by a former neighbour, 8 years ago, before she moved. Here's the problem, up until last year it bloomed beautifully, last year it had 12 blooms. This year I can only see two shoots coming so far. I have two other coloured peonies, spaced about 4 feet away from each other which are doing great,they are much younger plants. The winter here was cold and we had more than normal rainfall earlier this spring, it's in good quality soil and has good drainage. I'm devasted because my former neighbour has passed away and this was a favorite plant for both of us. What could be the problem? and if I move the remaining plant to a new area will it survive? I do know that if I move it, it won't bloom for several years. Any suggestion would be appreciated.
do you know how long your neighbor had it before giving it to you??? they live for quite a long time - around 50 years or so. maybe it's just reached it's end? i wouldn't recommend moving it as that may disturb it enough to keep it from blooming (they don't really like to be moved).
She lived next door to us for a 8 years but brought the plant with her from her 1st home, where she had lived for over 40 years. I knew they didn't like being moved to much, so I guess maybe your answer of old age could be caorrect. I'll leave the two shoots where the are in hopes that it will begin anew, I'll just have to wait a few more years and hope. Thanks so much.
i was thinking that age may be the issue. well, hopefully it'll give you another year or two of blooms!! take pics of them, too, as you may still be able to get that particular variety (having a pic, since you don't know the name of it will help in replacing it).
Our Peonies in the back yard vary in the number of flowers each year; some times 10 sometimes 2. I'm sure it'll be fine for these plants can out humans! :-)
I'm keeping my fingers crossed, that Peony in question has always had 20+ shoots by this time, so far there's only 3.
Well, on the bright side, there's always more peonies to buy. Though they wont provide the same symbolic remembrance of your dearly departed friend, their beautiful flowers can always brighten your day.
Maybe it would be worthwhile digging it up in the fall and cleaning up the crown of dead parts or any rot and cutting the roots back some , might rejuvenate it over the next few years.
I just found out another possible problem for your peonies, and the solution is easy! The tubers need to get cold in the winter for the plants to produce lots of flowers, which is why ours did great this year. If your pot is small you can put it in the fridge for awhile each day, or you can just dump some ice onto the soil everyday for two weeks or so. The lady living here before us did the ice trick because she loved the flowers so much, and it worked for her.
