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Peonies: How to Prepare Peonies for Spring

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Hi everyone, today I’m excited to share a quick article with you about how I prepare my peonies for spring. My peonies are starting to sprout leaves. I have to admit, I’m a bit of a lazy gardener, so I honestly don’t do much to get my peonies ready for spring.

I figured out how to grow them on autopilot. So in this article, I’ll tell you exactly what I do to get them ready for the growing season. How to prepare your peonies for spring.

Fertilize Your Peonies Flower

Number one, fertilize your peonies. Peonies don’t need to be fertilized frequently. You can fertilize once in the spring when the buds are still emerging, and once after the flowers have faded. But if you only have time to fertilize your peonies once this year, no problem, they will survive. I sometimes only fertilize once a year, and to be honest, there have been years where I’ve been too busy and did not fertilize my peonies at all. They still live, but I did notice fewer flowers. Fertilizing does make a difference in how prolific it gets. It helps them bloom nicely. So the fertilizer that I use on my peonies is a slow-release granular fertilizer.

Use fertilizers that have less nitrogen, such as 3-4-5, 3-5-5, or 5-6-5. The first number is for nitrogen, the second number is for phosphorus, and the third is for potassium. Just don’t use a high nitrogen fertilizer since that will just result in fewer flowers and thin, floppy stems. Trust me, I learned it the hard way. I like the granule fertilizer as opposed to the liquid fertilizer because I’m just lazy. I find it easier to just sprinkle fertilizer on my peonies. With a liquid fertilizer, you’ll have to mix it with water, which is just an extra step in the process.

Mulching Your Peonies Flower

Number two, mulch. I mulch around my peonies once a year in the spring. I like to add some mulch around the base of the plants. This helps them retain water. So, I don’t have to worry about them drying out. Plus, I can be a lazy gardener because I don’t have to water them as often. I usually water my peonies once a week, but I’ll increase it a bit if there’s a heat wave.

Keep in mind that if you live somewhere warmer, you’ll need to water your peonies more often. You can’t get away with once-a-week watering. Another advantage of mulching is it keeps the weeds out. But just be careful when mulching. Don’t mulch too close to the stem. It’s best to keep the soil around the stem clear from mulch.

Support your peonies Flower

Number three, add support. Spring is a great time to add support to your peonies. Peonies have a tendency to flop over because the flowers grow too big and heavy. So, you want to prop the flowers up with stakes and cages. I use tomato cages to support my peonies.

When to put support

The easiest time to put the support is when the peonies are just emerging. Otherwise, it’s going to be really tough to get the support in. But it’s not the end of the world if you don’t add support in the spring. I know life gets busy, and I personally have been guilty of forgetting to add the support until later in the summer when my peonies are in full bloom. But don’t worry, it’s possible. Another lazy gardener tip that I have is to actually just leave the support all year round. I don’t even bother removing the support. It’s just always there.

Conclusion

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