My peony is still not blooming in its second year - Ask Extension
Hi. I contacted you last year about my Myrtle Gentry peony. This is a late blooming peony but I think it should have bloomed by now if it was going t...
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My peony is still not blooming in its second year #755937
Asked June 13, 2021, 6:55 PM EDT
Hi. I contacted you last year about my Myrtle Gentry peony. This is a late blooming peony but I think it should have bloomed by now if it was going to do so. This year it has more buds than last year (last year it had two, this year 5). Last year one of the buds got big and it seemed about to bloom but never did. This year, all the buds stayed small. You suggested that I add manure so I bought some composted manure from the garden center. This peony was suggested for sun to partial shade. It has around 5 hours of full sun and several more hours of partial shade a day. I have been watering it in the morning and late afternoon. Do you think I should move it to a site with more hours of full sun? Or, perhaps I need to just wait another year for it to mature? Any suggestions will be most appreciated. I am attaching last year's photo and two photos from this year. Thanks!
Washington County Minnesota
Expert Response
We think the flower buds have been damaged by a fungal disease called botrytis.
Go here to learn about botrytis and how to control it:
http://hyg.ipm.illinois.edu/article.php?id=796
https://ag.purdue.edu/btny/ppdl/Pages/Peonies---Undeveloped-Buds.aspx
More sun would benefit the plant but before moving it, see how it fares after botrytis has been controlled.
Go here to learn about botrytis and how to control it:
http://hyg.ipm.illinois.edu/article.php?id=796
https://ag.purdue.edu/btny/ppdl/Pages/Peonies---Undeveloped-Buds.aspx
More sun would benefit the plant but before moving it, see how it fares after botrytis has been controlled.
I suspect that our very wet spring might have contributed to the problem. The leaves do not have any spots or blotches at all and look totally healthy to me. Does this mean that it is not a severe case of botrytis?
I know that peonies don't like to be moved. Do you think I should keep it in place one more year and see how it does spring of 2022 especially since it got the nice size bud in 2020?
Thanks again for your help!
Kathy
It's not a severe case and it's good to have healthy leaves but unfortunately the buds are often the first to show evidence of the disease.
Botrytis is more prevalent some years than others and perhaps when the plants are mature enough to produce many buds, only some of them will be affected.
Wait and see is sometimes the best option when we work with growing things but it requires patience.
The choice is yours, but if the plant was mine, I'd wait to see what happens next spring before moving it. But I'd take some botrytis control measures too.
"Avoid overhead irrigation. Maintain low humidity. Remove infected plant parts. Clean up debris at season end. Apply a fungicide to protect plants."
https://extension.psu.edu/peony-diseases
Botrytis is more prevalent some years than others and perhaps when the plants are mature enough to produce many buds, only some of them will be affected.
Wait and see is sometimes the best option when we work with growing things but it requires patience.
The choice is yours, but if the plant was mine, I'd wait to see what happens next spring before moving it. But I'd take some botrytis control measures too.
"Avoid overhead irrigation. Maintain low humidity. Remove infected plant parts. Clean up debris at season end. Apply a fungicide to protect plants."
https://extension.psu.edu/peony-diseases
