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June 7, 2021 · 9 Comments

Four Peony Problems and Solutions

Plants

It’s peony season here in Minnesota, which usually means an abundance of blooms and a few peony problems. Peonies are a heritage plant in our part of the world and typically bloom for a couple of weeks in early summer. We have several peony breeders in the state and some hold open days during this time of the year.

healthy pink peony about to open in a northern garden
Healthy peony flower about to open up.

On the whole, they are one of the easiest, most care-free and long-lived plants in the garden, but there can be a few peony problems. This year, the heat is a small issue. We’ve set heat records this week, and that means the plants will bloom and fade quickly. Like a lot of other gardeners, I’ve been running around snipping buds just before they bloom to bring them into the house. They last a bit longer in the vase and I can enjoy their scent while hiding from the heat.

Here are four more common peony problems and what to do about them.

Flopping

pink peony flopped over after rain
A little rain and this unsupported peony flopped over.

Easily the most common peony problem is that they flop over. Peony blooms are large compared to their stems. Add some rain or a windy day and they end up bloomside down on the ground. Installing plant supports early in the season is the best way to prevent flopping. I’ve used a variety of supports both half-circle supports and full circle supports, and the full-circle supports work best for peonies. Get metal rather than plastic, if you can afford it, and look carefully at the size of the support before buying. Some gardeners use modified tomato cages as supports, too.

Whichever support you choose, get it on the plant early—preferably before or just as shoots emerge in spring. Even with a support, you may have a bloom or two flop over. Just pick it and bring it into the house.

You can also choose varieties of peonies that have been bred to have stronger stems. Many of these are Itoh peonies, which are a cross between tree peonies and herbaceous peonies. The heritage peonies that I love are floppers, so support is mandatory.

Powdery Mildew

I’m facing a case of powdery mildew on one of my peonies this year. Powdery mildew is a fungal condition that flourishes when plants are in damp or stressful conditions. It has not been a wet year, but this particular peony is planted next to a garage wall and very close to a small tree and other peony. The conditions are not ideal as peonies do best with plenty of sun and lots of air flow around them.

foliage of peony covered with white spots from powdery mildew
There is a bad case of powdery mildew on this peony foliage.

There are a variety of sprays and concoctions you can try to reduce powdery mildew—most contain a horticultural oil, such as neem oil. However, the University of Minnesota and many other experts recommend just tolerating powdery mildew during the growing season. At the end of the season, you should be sure to remove all the infected leaves from the area. Given how bad my powdery mildew is, I plan to prune out some of the peony stems after blooming to give the plant more airflow. In the fall, I’ll collect all the leaves and stems and put them in the trash.

Should I move my Duchesse de Nemours peony? That’s an option, but it should not be done until September. I have a few sunnier, more open spots in my front garden that would look great with a peony in them. Moving the peony might bring on the next peony problem, however.

Not Blooming

Every now and then, a peony will not bloom. There are lots of reasons peonies don’t bloom and most of them are of short duration. For instance, if I move the powdery mildew peony, it might not bloom next summer. Peonies last up to 100 years, but it takes them awhile to get accustomed to a new location. Other reasons peonies might not bloom are that they were planted improperly (usually too deeply), over-fertilized, or planted in a place with too little sun. If your peony was planted in the past couple of years, don’t worry too much about the lack of bloom. After that, however, you may want to consider other reasons why it might be not be flowering.

Botrytis Blight

Another common peony problem is botrytis blight. It’s also called gray mold and is another fungal disease that occurs most often during wet growing seasons. It can be devastating, causing stalks to rot and buds to fall off. Initially, the disease looks almost like your peony has blackspot, which circular reddish brown spots on the leaves. Buds will be brown and crusty.

Like powdery mildew, cleaning up the foliage in the fall and disposing of it is one step to prevent the disease from taking hold. Encouraging drainage and air circulation and planting peonies in sunny conditions also helps. Do not compost diseased foliage to prevent further spread of the disease.

These are not the only problems with peonies but are the most common. Overall, peonies are easy care, long lasting and beautiful. Every northern garden should have at least one.

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Comments

  1. Christine Gilbank says

    September 21, 2021 at 3:03 am

    I bought 2 peony bulbs in packs from Bunnings. I planted them according to the instructions about 8 weeks ago. Nothing has happened. No sign of life.

  2. Mary Schier says

    September 22, 2021 at 3:36 pm

    I’m not sure where you are from Christine, but if you are in Minnesota, you won’t see anything until next summer. Fall planted peonies usually do not produce foliage until the following spring.

  3. Kathy Elliott says

    May 29, 2022 at 9:06 pm

    My one peony bush looks healthy; it’s about 20 years old. The blooms are softball sized and very fragrant but I only get about 10 blooms
    Is it possible to make it produce more?

  4. Mary Schier says

    June 2, 2022 at 9:04 am

    What is the sun situation where you have them planted? The low number of blooms could be related to too much shade, especially if trees have grown up around the bush over the past 20 years. Another reason might be that the foliage was cut back too soon last summer? Here’s a good post from Iowa State on why peonies might not bloom.

  5. Tina says

    June 7, 2022 at 11:07 am

    I’m in central Iowa. My peonies have browns spots all over the leaves & stems. Also the glues sworm all over them. They are not blooming open. What can I do?

  6. Mary Schier says

    June 8, 2022 at 8:43 am

    Could it be this? https://hortnews.extension.iastate.edu/faq/there-are-large-brown-spots-my-peony-leaves-what-should-i-do

    The post does not mention not-blooming as a symptom. My peonies have been slow to bloom this year (none are open yet) but I would guess they should be open by now. If it is a fungal disease, you may want to move the peony in fall — the one I moved last year looks much healthier now and will have a few blooms. I expect more in 2023.

  7. Betsy Allan says

    June 25, 2022 at 12:07 pm

    I have a yellow tree peony that is about four feet tall and quite bushy. It is planted in mostly sun. For the last couple of years the blooms seem to be hidden within the foliage so it is not very showy. Should I be pruning it or what.

  8. Mary Schier says

    June 26, 2022 at 9:05 am

    Unlike herbaceous peonies,tree peonies do require some pruning. This post offers the basics of what to prune and when: https://www.thompson-morgan.com/pruning/tree-peonies

    Even with my herbaceous poenies, I remove spent stalks and floppy branches after blooming to make sure the foliage is attractive through the summer.

Trackbacks

  1. What to Do About Scorched Plants - Minnesota State Horticultural Society says:
    June 15, 2021 at 12:36 pm

    […] leaf problems may be powdery mildew or various blights. If you are not sure what is going on with your plant, check out the University […]

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