When is the best time to plant white peony?

Peony is one of the top ten famous flowers in China. There are many varieties, and white peony is grown in many regions. White peony root is also called white flower peony. Its root can be used as medicine and has a wide range of uses. So when is the best time to plant white peony? Let’s learn more about it below.

When is the best time to plant white peony?

The best time to plant white peony is in autumn, which is approximately mid-to-late August each year. Peonies can also be planted in early September, but the latest should not be later than early November. White peony should not be planted too early or too late, because almost all new roots of peony are grown in autumn, including the new shoots of the following year. After transplanting in autumn, the injured fleshy roots can gradually heal and grow new roots, which is conducive to continued growth in the spring of the following year.

How to plant white peony root

1. Site selection and land preparation

It is best to choose soil with good drainage, ventilation, sunshine, deep soil and fertile soil to plant white peony. There should be no shade from trees or buildings around the planting site. Before planting white peony, the soil should be carefully cultivated, with a depth of 30-40 cm and ploughed 1-2 times. In combination with tillage, apply 3,000 to 4,000 kg of fully decomposed manure or compost per mu as base fertilizer. Level and harrow the soil to make 1.3-2.3m high ridges.

2. Planting

White peony can be planted directly in the field, or it can be grown as seedlings first and then transplanted by dividing the roots. Peony heads are planted in September and October, with a row spacing of 50 cm and a plant spacing of 30 cm. The hole depth is 10 cm. 1-2 buds are placed in each hole, with the buds facing upwards and laid flat, and then covered with soil about 5 cm.

3. Intertillage and weeding

After planting white peony, when the red-headed buds emerge in the spring of the following year, tillage and weeding should be carried out immediately. However, at this time, the roots are thin and shallow, so deep hoeing is not suitable. Be careful not to loosen the soil around the plants to avoid damaging the roots and affecting their growth. Thereafter, tillage and weeding should be done once a month. During the hot season of July and August, tillage and weeding should be stopped. In winter, in November, the dead branches and leaves on the ground should be removed, the land should be cultivated, weeded, and organic fertilizer should be applied . Thereafter, tillage and weeding will be carried out 3 to 4 times a year.

4. Topdressing and irrigation

Generally, no top dressing is needed in the first year, and top dressing should be done twice a year thereafter: the first top dressing is done after the seedlings emerge from the soil, using human and animal manure or chemical fertilizers, which is called growing fertilizer; the second top dressing is done before the branches and leaves wither, using farmyard manure such as manure, cake fertilizer, and compost, which is called dormant fertilizer. After top dressing, combine tillage and soil cultivation to protect the buds over the winter. White peony plant likes drought, so you just need to add soil around the plants or cover the rows with grass in summer, and it can survive the summer safely. White peony is afraid of moisture, and even more afraid of waterlogging. When the soil contains too much water, it will cause root rot. Therefore, drainage should be carried out in time during the rainy season.

5. Picking buds

When the flower buds of white peony grow big in mid-April, choose a sunny day to remove all the flower buds and dispose of them together. Picking buds helps concentrate nutrients and promotes the growth of plants and roots. For plants to be kept for seeds, some large flower buds can be left and the rest can be removed. The seeds collected in this way are full of seeds.

That’s it