There are two classes of peonies, Paeonia lactiflora
and Paeonia suffruticosa. Lactiflora are the herbaceous forms, this means they die back to the ground every year. Suffruticosa
are the tree peonies, these, the main stem stays above ground in most areas without dieing back.
Peonies are long lived plants.
Once planted they will live for years with no care required. Many peonies are the ones that have been passed down for hundreds
of years. Grow them in full sun and a rich but well-drained soil. Make sure to improve the soil as much as possible.
These plants will not be moved for years so the better the soil, the happier the plant. Peonies should only
be moved in fall (September) if possible. Dig carefully because the roots break easily. Water the roots well the day before
to ease the digging, and it also helps hydrate the plant before moving. Cut the foliage back before replanting. Once the plant
is moved water it well. Be sure not to plant the eyes of the plant to deep. If you do, your plant will grow and not flower.
Plant them approximately 1/2 inch to an inch below the top of the soil. They can be picky so it may be a few years before
you see a bloom. I once read an article that said peonies were once believed to let out a high pitch scream
when taken from the soil and this scream would kill you. So to get the roots out of the ground and survive, people would tie
a dog to the plant, and cover their ears so that they would not die as the plant was ripped from the ground. I
have dug many a peony and I have survived. I haven't even heard a scream. Tree peonies require almost
the same conditions as regular peonies, they do prefer a more alkaline soil, and the roots should be planted deeper.
This is because the graft of the tree peony needs to be protected in cold climates. Plant these at least 4 inches deep, deeper
doesn't hurt these plants. Follow these few tips and you should have peonies for many years to come.
Spring Spring is the time when everything is new again.
A whole new start to your garden. To get your garden off to the best start, remove any dead foliage that was not removed in
the fall, being careful not to damage any new growth. Even though it may feel to cold for us outside many plants will start
growing long before the last frost. Spring and winter like to heave plants from the ground,
heaving is caused by the freezing and thawing of the ground. The best way to protect your plants from this is to mulch them.
This provides an insulation that protects the ground from freezing and thawing. Your plants may start just a little later
than your neighbors, but you have less chance of losing them. Mulch also keeps the soil cool in the summer and warmer in the
fall. Mulch helps to maintain moisture, and depending on the mulch, will break down and add nutrients to the soil. A two to
three inch layer of mulch is best. Compost is the best fertilizer/mulch there is. Compost is plant material
and/or leaves, manure from cows, birds or horses that has partially decomposed so the nutrients are available to the
soil and it also is a great conditioner for the soil, usually holding moisture and areating the soil. A light covering of
compost in the spring can do wonders for your plants. Some say that you should scratch this into the top couple inches
of soil around your plants. I have found that just putting it on the ground around your plants allows the nutrients to wash
into the soil as it rains. Worms are good about working it in for you, why do all the work yourself? Most
plants that seem to have out grown their area can be divided now. Usually this is done by digging up the plant and breaking
or cutting the plant into smaller sections and replacing them back into the ground. This of course gives you new plants to
share with friends or expand your garden. Be sure to water the new plants in well. They may look a little wilted for a while,
this is usually because the roots have been disturbed and water intake has been reduced. If the plant is watered well and
kept watered for the first few weeks after this practice I am sure you will have no problems at all. Last
thing to do is to remove any weeds now while they are small. A little work at this will save you a lot of work later.
The mulch applied afterwards will help to keep weeds from coming back and any that do are usually easier to remove.
Now just sit back and watch the birds and your flowers grow. Happy gardening!
Chamberlain Acres Perennial Nursery
Plant Tips and Info
Iris Care and Dividing
Irises
can become congested over time, which tends to inhibit flowering. Remedy this by lifting and dividing their rhizomes to give
them a little more space. Heres how:
Use a fork to dig up a clump of irises. Ease the
plants from the soil, trying not to spear any of the rhizomes.
Pull the congested rhizomes apart by hand, or cut
them with a knife. Choose healthy pieces with leaves and discard old, woody sections.
Check for iris borer and soft rot now. Iris borer is a caterpillar that hatches
in the spring from eggs that are deposited on old leaves of iris. They climb up the leaves and prick a hole into the leaf
and eat or tunnel their way to the rhizomes. In the fall they leave the rhizomes when they are 1 1/2 to 2 inches long, going
into the soil, where they pupate in the spring as moths. The best thing to prevent iris borer is to remove all old leaves
in the fall and destroy them. Any tunneling seen on leaves in the spring should be squashed between your fingers to help kill
the little caterpillars. Soft rot is a bacterial rot of the rhizome, which can be caused by iris borers or by over watering.
The rhizome is mushy and smells really bad. If you find soft rot, cut away any bad part of the rhizome. Soak the rhizome in
a 10% bleach solution for 1 to 10 minutes. Allow to air dry over night before replanting.
Newly planted rhizomes are vulnerable to being knocked down by the wind. Cut the leaves back
to half into a fan shape or inverted V. This helps also because the roots have been disturbed and need to reestablish themselves
before being able to supply all the water that a full sized iris would need.
Replant healthy rhizomes about 12 inches apart in fertile soil.
Remember to plant only 1/2 the rhizome. Iris like their rhizomes to be on top of the soil.
This process is best repeated every three years or so.
How to Start New Rhododendrons from Your Plants
Cuttings from rhododendrons aren't the easiest to get going, however you can layer
your rhododendron to get new plants, and here's how you do it. The best time to start is late spring or early
summer.
1. Find a branch thats close to the ground, that will touch the ground without breaking
if pushed down. 2. Remove the leaves from this stem except for the top leaves.
3. Using a sharp knife, cut the stem 1/4 to 1/2 through about 6 to 8 inches below the end of the branch.
4. Sprinkle rooting hormone in this cut area. 5. Bend this branch to the ground and
lay the cut area on the ground. 6. Cover the branch with soil or compost. 7. Place a stone on top of the branch to hold it down so it stays in contact with
the soil. 8. In the fall this branch should have roots where the branch has been
cut. You can remove this now by cutting the branch just below where you made the cut. It is best however to wait till spring
and let the new plant develop better roots over the winter.
Making Decorative Pots with
Plants
A
trick when planting a container combination: Pick a main plant and then go wandering around holding it up against other plants
until you find plants you would like to put with it. In fall, change the look by trying to decide what to do for winter. Remove non hardy
plants and replace with evergreen boughs, branches or even cut grasses to give some interest. Many ornaments are made of plastic
and can be added to your pots. Seed heads of plants can be spray painted and added to your pots for even more interest. A few spring flowering bulbs added to the pot, such as daffodil, tulips, snow drops or crocous can
make a nice surprise for spring. Remember its important to do what you like, go ahead and make a statement.
Animal
Chewing in Winter
Watch out for mouse or rabbit damage around
trees and shrubs. This is the time when animal damage is at its highest. Food is scarce and animals will girdle
the stems of many small trees and shrubs. Girdling, is eating the bark off the tree or shrub all the way around
the plant. This causes the plant to not be able to transport nutrients from the roots to the top of the plant, thus killing
the plant. If its mice doing the damage, mouse baits may be placed out to help elimanate the problem. However
put these where other non targeted animals will not get into them. A cat can help keep the mouse population in check also. If its rabbits, wire to keep them away from the base of the tree can help or they make a hard plastic wrap that can
go around the tree to help protect it. Works great to keep the weed whacker from hitting the trunk also.
Fall and Winter Tips
There are several reasons why you should not cut your perennials
back in the winter. First, many of them are attractive to look at even after they have turned brown. Birds often will use
the seed from flower heads to survive the winter. Some foliage from perennials also makes a nice cover for birds in the winter.
Winter winds can be harsh and this can be much needed protection. With some marginally hardy perennials
such as Mums the foliage seems to protect the crowns of the plant. Some plants don't die back to the ground and cutting
them will cut back next years growth if cut to short. Leaving foliage also allows you to find your plants in the spring. Some
plants are late to come up, Butterfly Weed is one, and the foliage is a great indicator to prevent you from digging
up or digging to close to the plant. One reason to cut back foliage is if you have been having
disease problems. Cutting back the foliage and destroying it, do not put it in the compost, may help in preventing the disease
the following year or spreading it to other plants. If you don't like the look and you feel the need
to cut back your plants in the fall, wait till they are dormant, usually after several hard frosts.Cut the plant back to 2
to 3 inches from the ground to prevent damage to the crown. Just remember to cut any foliage back
in early spring before new growth starts on any plants that were not cut back in the fall.
Exotic Hibiscus
I call it
that because it is the hibiscus that the local chain stores sell during the summer as outdoor plants. These plants of course
are not hardy to our zone. They flower with beautiful flowers all summer long and grow and then when it starts to turn cold
what do you do? A neighbor stopped by this fall and asked if I had any desires to have the one that had
been growing in her yard all summer. I felt bad for her that this plant she had watched all summer would soon die due to frost.
Never having over wintered one before I said I would try and keep it alive for her. The greenhouse was not started yet so
it meant that the plant had to come inside. I dug the plant and removed some of the soil around its roots.
I then planted the plant in a large pot and trimmed back all the branches until they were six inches long. I then watered
the plant well and left it outside under a tree for a few days. if the temperature was to drop below 32 degrees I put it in
the garage. By this time most of the leaves had fallen off the plant. I brought the plant inside and placed it next to a window
that gets afternoon sun. Well let me say that this plant has rebounded and is doing quite well. It took a few weeks before
anything happened but then new leaves started to appear. Now the stems are growing and about 4 inches of new growth has filled
out the plant. By the looks I am sure I will have flowers soon. So, go ahead and buy those plants you want
so bad and give them a try. This hibiscus did great and I am sure will live many more winters indoors now. I've learned
something new and will try it on a few other plants next year.
