How to propagate peonies in spring, autumn

Peonies reproduce mainly vegetatively – parts of an adult plant. The survival rate in this case is quite good, but in order for reproduction to be successful, you need to know the basic rules.

Peony breeding methods

There are several ways in which perennial peonies reproduce. Among them can be listed:

• reproduction by dividing the bush, the method allows you to save all varietal characteristics, but it is used only for adult bushes;
• propagation by stem cuttings, the method is rather troublesome and complex, allows you to save the characteristics of varietal peonies, but is not suitable for breeding hybrids;
• reproduction by root cuttings, the characteristics of the variety when using the method are preserved in some hybrids and medicinal peony, due to which the method is especially popular;
• reproduction by pruning, a simple method in which the characteristics of the variety are preserved, however, it can be practiced, like the classical division, only for adult bushes.

In a separate category, it is worth highlighting seed reproduction. It is possible to increase the population of flowers on the site in this way, but seed breeding is rarely chosen. With it, the characteristics of the variety are not preserved, not all peonies, in principle, give seeds, and besides, the germination rate here is not too high.

Basically, flowers are propagated vegetatively – it’s more convenient and faster.

Peony breeding time

Reproduction of flowers can be carried out in spring and autumn. But at the same time, you need to choose the methods that are appropriate for the season, since not by any means can a plant be bred throughout the year.

When and how to propagate a peony in spring

The spring period is well suited for the following peony breeding methods:

1. The division of the peony bush in spring. It is allowed to carry out the procedure, including at the beginning of the growing season. At the same time, it is better not to touch the flower bushes immediately after the snow melts, but from mid-April it is already possible to dig up and divide the plant.
2. Stem cuttings. Reproduction can be carried out in late spring and early summer, about 10 days before flowering and directly during flowering.
3. Vertical outlets. It is necessary to start growing peony layering in early spring, at the very beginning of the growing season, after the snow cover has melted.
4. Pruning. Reproduction of the peony in this way is also carried out in early spring after the snow has melted, in fact, the method is a variation of the usual division of the bush.

The advantages of spring breeding are that during the season, young cuttings, layering or cuttings have time to get stronger and easily survive the winter.

Reproduction can be carried out both in spring and autumn

When and how to propagate peonies in the fall

Autumn reproduction of peonies is usually carried out until October, the plant needs at least a month to take root properly. You can use the following methods in the fall:

• root cuttings – pieces of roots are usually harvested from the beginning of August to mid-September, at the moment when the buds are already ripe, but small roots have not yet formed;
• bush division – the procedure is carried out from September to October, before the onset of the first cold weather.

How to propagate peonies from cuttings

The cutting method is usually used to breed the most valuable varieties of peonies. This is due to the fact that the risks of damaging the mother bush are minimal. Even if reproduction fails, the existing plant will not be affected.

Reproduction of peonies by stem cuttings

Stem cuttings are not the easiest method, and peony shoots do not always take root. Therefore, before the procedure, it is recommended to prepare more cuttings, up to 20% of the stems from an adult plant 5 years old and older.

The breeding algorithm is as follows.

1. Choose a few healthy stems from the middle of the peony bush. Then they are either torn off with a sharp movement along with the underground part, or cut off near the ground itself.
2. The stems are divided into 2-3 cuttings with a pruner, each of them must have at least 2 internodes.
3. The cuttings in the lower part are cut off under the leaf, removing the leaf itself, the upper leaf is cut off by a third.
4. The cuttings are soaked for 2,5 hours in Kornevin’s solution from the side of the lower cut – this stimulates the peony to grow faster.

Stem cuttings are not suitable for hybrid varieties

You can grow a peony from a cutting both in an open garden bed and in a tin can at home. The soil in both cases will need the same – leafy soil is mixed in equal parts with compost, and a few centimeters of clean sand are poured on top.

After preparation, the cuttings are buried in the sand by 5 cm with a slight slope, moistened and covered with a film or glass jar. Three times a day, the shoots must be sprayed with water, and after 3 weeks of cultivation, ventilate daily, first for half an hour, then up to 3 hours. The temperature for cuttings should not exceed 25 °C.

If the cuttings are grown at home, then for the winter they should be provided with a decrease in temperature to about 15 ° C.

In an open garden, cuttings are covered with brushwood, straw or sawdust for the winter months. At the beginning of next spring, after the snow melts, the shoots are carefully transplanted into the ground to a permanent place.

The stem propagation method is only suitable for varietal peonies. Interspecific hybrids do not reproduce in this way.

Cuttings need to be harvested in large volumes, not all of them will take root

Reproduction of peonies by root cuttings

A root cutting is a small section of the rhizome of a peony, which has its own root and a germ eye. Plant propagation is carried out according to the following algorithm:

1. A peony bush is dug out of the ground and carefully cleaned of old roots and dirt. The rhizome is divided into pieces of 5-7 cm, on each of the pieces there should be a kidney and a young root.
2. Planting material is soaked for 2 hours for disinfection in a solution of potassium permanganate, and then slightly dried in the fresh air and rolled in crushed coal.
3. Root cuttings are left overnight so that a crust has time to form on the cuts.

After that, the planting material is placed on temporary beds with nutrient soil or in tins with prepared soil from fertile soil and compost. Root cuttings are deepened 4 cm deep, kept in a lighted place with light shading and watered regularly. Both at home and in open conditions, young shoots should appear in the spring, after which the peony continues to be looked after for another year, and then transplanted to a permanent place.

Root cuttings can be carried out both at home and on the site

How to propagate peonies with vertical layering

A very simple and convenient way to propagate peonies is to grow vertical layering in a tin. The procedure looks like this:

• in early spring, you need to take a long tin can without a lid, cut out the bottom of it, wash it and properly disinfect it;
• the jar is put on the selected shoot of an adult peony bush – a strong and healthy young stem;
• as the shoot grows, nutrient soil is poured into the jar – black soil, river sand and rotted manure are mixed in equal proportions;
• the soil in the jar is regularly watered, and so that the soil inside does not overheat under the rays of the sun, the outside of the jar is wrapped with cardboard and polyethylene.

Care for the escape continues all summer, and with the onset of autumn, the stem is cut with a sharp knife under the jar. The shoot itself, which manages to give roots inside the jar during the summer, is carefully removed and transplanted into the prepared hole in the selected area.

It is very easy to propagate a flower with vertical layering.

This method is suitable only for the reproduction of milky-flowered varieties of peonies, and is not suitable for tree-like plants. Its efficiency is very high, and the damage to the mother bush and the shoot itself is insignificant.

Reproduction of peonies by dividing the bush

Dividing the bush remains the most popular method of breeding mature plants. The method is suitable for all varieties of peony, while the characteristics are fully preserved.

When is the best time to divide peonies for propagation?

The best time to divide a peony bush comes twice a season, in spring at the end of April or early May, and in autumn, at the end of August or at the beginning of September. When carrying out the procedure, it must be borne in mind that delenki planted in the spring may develop slowly. In the first year of life, they simply will not have time to take root properly, since they will almost immediately move on to building up green mass.

In autumn, the procedure must be carried out before September 15, otherwise the first autumn frosts will not allow the peony to take root.

Reproduction of peonies by dividing the bush in the fall is recommended for plants older than 5 years. They have a more developed root system that tolerates interference well.

Bush division – the main method for adult plants

How to dig and divide a peony bush

Dividing a peony bush is not a very complicated procedure, but it must be carried out according to the rules:

1. On the chosen day, all the stems are cut off from the peony bush and the soil around the plant is raked.
2. The root is carefully removed from the soil, trying not to damage the young adventitious roots responsible for nutrition.
3. The earth from the roots is gently shaken off, then the rhizome is carefully washed with water to clean the growth buds.
4. For several hours, the peeled rhizome is placed in a shaded, dry place so that it dries slightly, and then the adventitious roots are cut to 10-12 cm in length.

The dried rhizome is cut with a pruner or a sharp knife into several parts. Each of the peony divisions with buds should retain 2-3 eyes and a pair of adventitious roots of at least 1 cm in diameter. The cut off rhizome of the uterine bush is sprinkled with charcoal at the cut points, and at the same time, during the procedure, all rotten areas are cut off on it.

How to plant a peony delenka

It is best to plant peony delenki in an open sunny area. Before planting, the material is disinfected for half an hour in a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate.

On each of the divisions, growth buds and nourishing roots should remain.

A landing pit for peonies is prepared in 3 days, the depth should be about 60 cm. Landing is simple:

• nutrient soil is poured into the hole – 3 buckets of humus, a glass of ash and complex fertilizers in granules;
• the division is placed on a mound of soil inside the hole and carefully fills the space between the roots with earth;
• the hole is filled up to the end and the rhizome is abundantly watered with water.

After planting, the growth buds of the delenka should be level with the ground or no deeper than 5 cm, otherwise it will be difficult for the peony to grow. The plant will be able to bloom the next year with a successful planting or after 3 years in case of slow growth.

How to propagate a peony by pruning

A convenient method of propagation, suitable for all varieties of peony, is pruning the rhizome. The method is as follows:

• in the spring, after thawing the soil around the peony bush, they rake the earth to a depth of about 15 cm;
• with a sharpened shovel, cut off the upper part of the root system, along with the buds of regrowth, about 7 cm below them;
• the upper part of the bush is separated from the main rhizome and easily breaks up into separate divisions.

The method allows you to get several dozen strong divisions from one adult bush. The advantage is that the entire bush does not have to be dug up, making it easier for the grower and also reducing damage to the parent plant.

Pruning – a simple option for dividing the rhizome

Care instructions

After cuttings, dividing peonies in the fall or pruning, it is important to ensure that the mother plant and young peonies are well cared for. It’s easy to do this:

1. After division, it is important to protect the uterine bush from possible infection. To do this, fresh cuts on the rhizome and aerial parts must be treated with a solution of potassium permanganate, and then sprinkled with ash or charcoal.
2. After dividing the bush and disinfecting, the mother plant should be covered with fertile soil and mulched with sawdust with a layer of 10 cm. The peony is restored quickly, already by autumn, if spring reproduction was performed, and by the next season after division in the fall.

As for the rhizomes and planted cuttings, it is important for them to ensure, first of all, good watering and stable temperatures. You need to moisten the soil about once a week. If the weather changes often, or the peony is planted in a windy area, the stalk or delenka can be covered with a film, this will create greenhouse conditions.

Before the onset of winter, the uterine bush, delenki and cuttings are important to properly cover from frost. Usually, the peony is covered with straw, fallen leaves or sawdust in a dense layer, this will protect the plants from freezing. With the onset of spring, it is important to apply complex fertilizers with a nitrogen content, they stimulate young peonies to grow and help the mother bush recover.

Flowers tolerate pruning and division very well and quickly begin new growth.

Conclusion

Peonies reproduce in several vegetative ways – stem cuttings, layering and pieces of the root. In all cases, the peony requires a careful approach to the breeding procedure and needs high-quality care, but it responds to breeding quite well and quickly starts to grow.