Marianne's Response

capcuis’s Question

I have three peonies that have produced beautiful flowers for quite some time. This year only one plant produced blossoms (3)and the other two did nothing!! They didn’t even grow as tall this year. They are planted side by side and are usually supported by tomato cages that have been cut and spread flat. Do they reach a point where they need to be replaced? Could voles be the problem? I was so looking forward to the flowers this spring and was sadly disappointed.
Any advice would be appreciated.

Posted by Pam Carelli on July 11, 2013

Marianne's Response

Peonies do not grow old and stop blooming. Voles could be damaging the roots so if you see tunnels or caved in soil that could be the problem. Another thought is that mulch or soil has been pushed on top of the peony roots and they hate being planted too deep. Try scraping the soil away from the top of the plants so the roots are just barely covered with soil. Prune the plants to the ground in October and see what pops up in the spring. If voles damaged the roots a year of new growth means you might have a blooming surprise next spring. Keep growing, Marianne Binetti