I have a giant tree peony that has bloomed once in the 5 yrs Ive had it. It is in the wrong spot because it grows to 7' tall and 5-6' wide, totally over crowding everything else so I prune it ! I don't have room for it and want it to go to a new home where someone hopefully knows more about them than me. :) I live in North vancouver .
Yes I realized that after reading some of the forums this am :( But its too big so it has to go. If you know someone that would like it please let me know thanks :)
You are not alone sherry. We are out in the Fraser Valley and have exactly the same issue. Our Tree Peony came from Dart's Hill in South Surrey, but has gone mad in our garden. No, Ron, I do not cut it back or prune it. I have only taken off a few suckers around the edges. The winter nips the ends of some stems, so there are always suckers and not predominantly old growth. We do get some flowers, but really it is just a ball of green that gets bigger every year. I suspect that it should not be in a mixed perennial/shrub bed where it can pick up fertilizer and water which we use in this area. If I did it again, I would insist that it be planted in an area where it could in no way get fertilized or watered.
Lol that sounds exactly like mine- a big ball of green despite lack of fertilizer and sometimes water :)
>The winter nips the ends of some stems, so there are always suckers and not predominantly old growth< Implying that the climate is pruning it, with retention of a full compliment of mature, flowering wood being prevented. With tree peonies frosting of the new growth being an issue has been mentioned for years by references discussing their cultivation. Optimal or high nutrient levels do not necessarily interfere with flowering, indeed only well fed plants will be productive in general. Each kind of plant has its own soil adaptation, it is even possible to assess soil quality by what plants are growing natively on a site. The old line that nitrogen fertilization impedes flowering and fruiting is false, for instance a barren apple orchard in New York was determined to have a nitrogen deficiency causing the lack of fruiting.