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How to grow peonies
- BBC Gardeners' World Magazine
Published: Friday, 25 April 2025 at 4:00 pm
Find out all you need to know about growing peonies, in this detailed Grow Guide.
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When it comes to flamboyant flowers, few plants can beat the hardy, deciduous peony – the giant blooms can often be the size of dinner plates. The blooms are often wonderfully fragrant and make luxurious cut flowers. Depending on the variety, peonies season of flowering is from April to July. Although peonies are often costly to buy and are slow to get going, taking several years to start blooming abundantly, this is counterbalanced by their long life that can be many decades.
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There are three types of peony: herbaceous types, which grow to around 90 cm high and die back to ground level every winter, tree peonies, which are taller, to around 1.5-2 m high with a woody framework of stems, and intersectional hybrids, which are herbaceous in habit but crossed with tree peonies to give sturdiness, longer flowering and attractive foliage.
Where to grow peonies
Grow peonies in a sheltered spot in full sun to partial shade, in rich but well-drained soil. If your soil is thin or poor, or if the texture is heavy and slow to drain, mix in plenty of well-rotted organic matter before planting – never plant peonies in waterlogged soil. Most herbaceous peonies need a neutral or slightly alkaline soil.
Grow peonies in borders, siting herbaceous ones in the middle so other plants conceal the foliage, which can look tatty as plants die back. Site tree peonies towards the back of a border.
How to plant peonies
Peony 'Nippon Beauty'. Jason Ingram
Dig a hole larger than the roots and ensure the crown (the bud tip) is 5cm below the soil surface. Ensure you don't plant them too deeply, as this will yield poor results. Autumn is the best time of year to plant, so your peony establishes before the next year’s growth. Spring is the next best time to plant, as long as you can keep your new peony watered. Whatever the time of year, water in immediately after planting.
If buying bare-root peonies, plant them as soon as they arrive. If that isn’t possible, remove packaging and keep in a bucket of compost or pop into a bed or border temporarily.
In this video guide, Monty Don show's how to plant a herbaceous peony, 'Sarah Bernhardt' and taller tree peonies. He explains how planting depth is crucial with peonies – and how to get it right.
Where to buy peonies online
How to care for peonies
In the video above, the experts at Binny Plants share their top tips for caring for peonies.
Water during dry spells for the first year, until established. Thereafter, peonies benefit from watering during dry spring weather, giving an occasional but thorough watering as this is when buds are forming.
Once established, peonies are easy to look after. In autumn, wait for the foliage of herbaceous and intersectional peonies to die back fully before cutting to the ground. Tree peonies do not need pruning – all you need to do is remove the faded seed heads. Don’t be tempted to pick off the faded foliage, let it fall off naturally instead.
Cutting back herbaceous peony. Tim Sandall
Use plant supports to prop up peonies with large, heavy flowers.
In winter, herbaceous and intersectional peonies are dormant, and once growth has been cut back there’s no way to see where they are. Marking their site with a label or similar avoids accidental damage, especially when weeding borders, to avoid stepping on the newly forming buds of the herbaceous types.
In borders, feed peonies once a year in spring or autumn with a general slow-release fertiliser and mulch the soil over the roots, keeping the crown clear.
Sometimes tree peonies form suckers around the base of the plant, which appear from below ground and have leaves that are different in appearance. Here, David Hurrion explains what to do with them:
How to propagate peonies
Peony 'Duchess of Marlborough'. Paul Debois
Divide well-established plants of herbaceous peonies in autumn, between October and early November. Use a garden knife or sharp spade to create good-sized divisions that each have three to five buds, and replant immediately into soil that has been refreshed with plenty of well-rotted compost.
How to take peony cuttings
While tree peonies are woody and not suited to division, it can be possible to propagate them by taking cuttings, layering a pliable stem, or sowing seed. Tree peonies aren’t easy plants to propagate, though, so be prepared for failure.
Take cuttings in late summer to early autumn. Prepare cuttings 10-15cm long, cutting just below a leaf joint. Dip the base in hormone rooting powder, place in a deep pot of cuttings compost mixed with a little perlite, and place in a heated propagator until rooted.
Pests and diseases
Leaves or stems with dark spots are symptoms of the fungal infection peony wilt. This is a form of botrytis that causes the stems to rot. Good air movement helps to prevent the disease, so avoid planting peonies too closely together or to closely with other plants. With older peonies that have formed dense clumps, remove the weaker, smaller stems to further encourage air movement.
Cut off any affected leaves or stems as soon as you notice dark spots on the leaves or stems, as this will help to reduce the spread of the fungus. Because peony wilt spreads easily, sterilise the blades of secateurs between each cut, using a cloth moistened with garden disinfectant or methylated spirits. Don’t compost infected material, instead, dispose of it by fire or in garden waste bins.
Advice on buying peonies
- Peonies are slow to establish, so buy the biggest peony you can afford, for the best display as soon as possible
- While plenty of peonies are available from garden centres, you may find more choice at a specialist nursery
- Check your peony for signs of damage and pests before you buy/as soon as you unpack it
Where to buy peonies online
Great peonies to grow
Peony 'Bowl of Beauty'. Jason Ingram
Peony flowers come in a vast range of colours and shapes. Pink peonies are the most abundant, offering a wealth of shades from palest blush to rich magenta. There are also white, apricot, and red peonies, and flower shapes including single, semi-double, and fully double. Explore some of these amazing peonies in this list of best peonies to grow.
Frequently asked questions
What is the downside of peonies?
Peonies take several years to become established and start blooming strongly. While herbaceous peonies are beautiful in flower, their season is fairly short and they offer nothing of interest at other times of year.
When do peonies bloom?
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Depending on the variety, peonies bloom from April to July.
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