“Blowers from the Wilds of Missouri” 
PAEONIA (Peony. Piney. Paeony ) 
The Paeonia or Peony was named after the mythical phy- 
sician, Paeon. The Peony is especially attractive and an im- 
portant flower-garden perennial, as it is prized for the 
showy spring and early summer blooms. The species num- 
ber about 25 in Europe and Asia, and one small flowered 
species, P. Brownii, in California. Peonies are among the 
dozen commonest and best hardy herbaceous perennials. By 
variation and hybridization, the garden forms are now very 
many. The herbaceous Peony has come into great promi- 
nence in the recent years. The merits of the plant have been 
recognized by the organization, in 1903, of the American 
Peony Society. The reasons for the popularity of the mod- 
ern race of herbaceous Peonies is given by Coit to be the 
ease with which they are grown, hardiness, permanence in 
the garden when once established, large size and wide range 
in color and form of the very showy flowers, fragrance of 
many of the varieties, freedom from disease and insects, use- 
fulness both for eut-flowers, and for landscape effects. 
The easiest and most satisfactory method of propagation 
of the herbaceous Peonies is by division of the large, thick 
roots. The roots may be lifted and divided any time from 
the middle of August until the stalks appear again in the 
spring. The best time is in the early autumn, when the cut 
surfaces soon callus over and new rootlets form before the 
frosts set in. Cut off the leaves and separate into as many 
divisions as can be made with an eye (or as many eyes as 
desired—we use 3-5 eyes per division) to each tuber. In 
digging, care should be taken that all of the tubers are dug 
up; for if not, they may remain dormant a season and then 
produce a shoot, giving rise to the many stray plants fre- 
quently found in old beds. Tubers divided without an eye 
should be planted, as they often act in a similar way, and 
make a showing above the ground in two years’ time. 
Propagating by seed is somewhat tedious; and is em- 
ployed only for the increasing distinct species, and for ob- 
taining new varieties. The seeds should be gathered as soon 
as ripe and kept damp until sown in November. A mulch 
the first season will keep the ground moist and prevent 
1. Peonies from cold storage can 
be set in spring. Best time for 
all others is September and 
2. Removal of small side buds 
lets all strength go into termi- 
How to Grow Peonteds 
weeds from growing. Usually, two years are required for 
the seed to germinate, and three more years before a well- 
developed bloom can be expected. 
Peonies grow in all kinds of soil, but do best in deep, rich, 
rather moist loam. A clay subsoil, if well drained, is very 
beneficial when blooms are desired; but the tubers ramify 
more in lighter soils if grown for propogating purposes. In 
preparing the bed, trench the soil thoroughly two or more 
feet deep, working in a great quantity of well rotted cow 
manure, as the plants are gross feeders. The ground should 
be kept well tilled, and an annual top dressing put above 
the plants in November. They should have a liberal supply 
of water at all times, and especially while in bloom. The 
eyes should be set two inches below the surface. In trans- 
planting, it is a good plan to remove all the old earth so as 
to start with fresh unimpoverished soil next to the roots. 
The flowers produced on small divided plants are likely to 
be imperfect, but when established a plant will continue to 
bloom if undisturbed for upward to 20 years. During the 
period of blooming, an inconspicuous wire support is desir- 
able, as a heavy rain often beats down the flowers. Peonies 
do fairly well in partial shade, which prolongs and intensi- 
fies the color of the bloom, and therefore may be used to 
advantage to brighten up somber nooks. Blooming season 
ranges from middle of May through June. Blooming season 
here is May only. They grow one to four feet high and are 
suitable for planting in front of shrubbery, along driveways, 
and are especially pleasing when entering a distant vista. 
The old flowers should be cut off, so that no unnecessary 
seed follicles will be formed, and thereby exhaust the plant. 
It is important to remove the faded foliage or stalks on all 
Peonies the latter part of August or first of September, so 
that it may not interfere with the next year’s shoots. To se- 
cure extra-fine blooms on double flowering varieties, remove 
the lateral buds as soon as formed. When the first lateral 
bud is retained instead of the terminal one, a later period 
of blooming is secured. 
4. After water and plant food, 
staking can do the most for 
improving the good looks of 
3. For continued good health, a 
Peony bush needs a good part 
October. Set trimmed root on nals. For specimen blooms 
cone of soil. Keep pink crown 
buds within 2 inches of the 
level of the surrounding soil. 
and the best results, disbud 
with a knife before buds ex- 
ceed pea-size. 
of its leaves. When you cut 
blooms, make sure two leaves 
remain on lower part of each 
stem. 
your Peonies. For a natural 
effect and unobtrusive sup- 
port, loop cord about stems 
and stakes as shown below. 

