Purchasing good divisions is the most important thing to acquire a productive and profitable garden. One can buy roots from a salesman or directly from a grower (in order to see with your own eyes what kind of quality is bought).

After having bought the divisions, it's recommended to give the roots a temperature treatment at 43.5° C (Celsius) in order to kill bacteria and other harmful diseases. After the treatment the roots can be planted in a healthy state.

The planting of the roots can be done manually or mechanically, although the current available machinery still needs to be improved. The existing machinery needs to be updated to accomplish that in the near future these machines will evolve for Peony use as well. During the planting process of the roots on must make sure that the soil where the roots is grown is properly drained and flattened. This must be done to prevent water damage.

After having cultivated the land properly (with a milling- or spade-machine) the roots are to be planted at a depth of 2 - 3 cm. This depth is very decisive because if the roots are planted too deep, the production of flowers will diminish or even completely vanish. The distance between the cuttings depends on the variety. Some varieties need more or less space than others. Furthermore, the time-period that roots will remain on a particular spot has to be taken taken in consideration as well.

Fertilizing and weeding

Peonies must be fertilized during the winter months. There is no rule to the amount of usage of each element (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium), because that depends on the soil. Peonies flourish on soil with a pH from 6 to 7. During the winter season chemicals against weeds can be used as well. It is important to do that during the cold season, because then the roots are at "rest" (dormant). Otherwise the roots are apt to absorb the chemicals which will without a doubt cause damage to the peony itself. When the young root starts growing in spring several kind of preventive fungicides can be used. This can be persisted until two weeks before harvesting. When the flowers have been picked liquid fertilizers can be used to improve the strength of the roots, accompanied by a cocktail of different fungicides.

When the first Peonies show up in February / March, the use of wind fences can be most helpful to protect the still vulnerable peony plants. The fences are usually placed from the east to west to keep the cold northern wind out. 

No gates are placed from south to north because that allows the wind to keep the plants dry and prevent the spread of Botrytis. When the plants are still small and vulnerable to diseases, copper sulphate can be used to ensure a firm and healthy plant. Several fungicides can be used to protect the plants against Botrytis (preventive).

When the Peonies are nearly ready to be harvested, and the main bud is developing, the side buds can be removed. This ensures a bigger flower, because side-buds use up nutrition's of the roots. Not only will the main-flower end up bigger but it also will be blooming earlier, because all nutrition will be directed to the main bud. The side-buds are usually removed manually at a length of 2 to 3 cm. This is a very time-consuming task. The number of buds differ from variety to variety.

Furthermore, it is important that – when removing the side-buds - the surface of the wound is kept to a minimum, because bacteria can easily enter wounds. It is important to keep that risk as low as possible.

By the end of April the workspace is prepared were the flowers will be further processed after having been picked. Important to know is when one is going to tape the flowers manually in numbers of five or ten one person is required. This way an estimate can be made of the number of staff that is needed to get the job done in time. Make sure that the workspace has a wide set-up so every worker has enough space to do the job.

As often bear in mind the three golden:

1. Preparation

2. Preparation

3. Preparation

When the buds have reached a certain size and softness, they are ready to be cut. Depending on the weather and variety most peony flowers can be cut from half May to the end of June. The harvest continues for app. six weeks.

When the peony flowers have been cut, they are put in wooden boxes (cubic boxes), with the opening to the side. When the box are brought back to their normal position afterwards, the peony stems are straight up. This way the boxes with the peonies can be placed in piles in their storage.

The Peonies are usually cut off at a length of 60 cm. It is very important that all cutters cut at the same length because if this should differ, it will cost precious time to sort all flowers by length. During the harvest the flowers can either be sold directly, or the cultivars that are vulnerable to botrytis can be prepared first.

One can not store the flowers too long because that way a loss of 40 % is put at risk in years of wetness. This is often a very important issue, because saving up the Peonies often means more profit but on the other hand there is the always present risk of quality loss. Therefore it is important that a good eye is kept on the quality when prolonging the season by keeping the Peonies in storage.

Peonies are sold in numbers of 5 or 10 and then put into plastic boxes. The number of peony flowers in one box depends on the variety: from 60 to 150. Eighteen of those plastic containers are put onto a wagon and picked up by a truck and transported to the flower-auction where they are sold. Information that always should be punt on every crate: the variety, the length, the number of Peonies present and the name of the producing company

After the harvest, the remaining flowers are removed by hand or by knife so the remaining nutrition can be dispersed to the root. It also prevents diseases from spreading. It is recommended to remove all dead organic material from the surface. Peonies like a clean surface and require nutrition and chalk.

Soils

Peonies love moist and rich organic nutritious soil. It should also be taken into consideration that on clay soil the harvesting of roots is much more difficult than on sandy soil. Clean roots are a big advantage and will save a lot of time. On the other hand, the main advantage of clay soil is that the roots grow bigger and much faster due of its high nutritious character. It’s all a matter of priorities.

Mowing Peonies

The mowing of Peonies takes place at the end of August. It is very important that all dead organic material is removed because all kind of diseases lives in dead organic material. This material can be gathered by a tractor with a sweeping tool attached or by hand with picking forks. The last remains must always be removed manually.

 © Paionia Peony Nursery, Fa. Scholten - Keeman 2001-2008