One
Select the peonies suitable for your areas. Northern climates have the full spectrum to chose from!  Warm weather climates like California and the southern states need to chose single, Japanese singles, semi-double or early doubles so that they will open before it gets too hot.

Two
Keep them dry and in a cool place while they are dormant until planting.

Three
Good drainage and soil are paramount. Prepare the soil well, as these roots will be in the ground for a long time. Add peat moss, compost and aged manure (no fresh manure) if you have it, and dig it all in well.

Four
Plant the peonies 18″ apart in climates (cold) where they will grow to be large. In warm climates plant them as close as 10″ as they will be smaller if you want a grouped look. Or plant them amid rose bushes and in the perernnial border as they die back to the ground in the winter.

Five
Note: Do NOT plant peonies this deep in warm climate areas!

In warm climates, plant the pink tipped buds just under ground level so that they receive as much cold as possible. Some people put ice on them, but I have never done so.  In the colder areas, plant them 1 1/2″ deep or 2″ in very cold areas as in the diagram. Peonies grow larger in cold areas and sometimes are huge. This diagram shows the planting depth in the cold north. This may be why so many people in warm climates say that their peonies have never bloomed!

Six
Water them in well when shoots begin to emerge in the spring as this is the most important to get water. Keep them watered during the growth cycle until they finish blooming.

Seven
After they have bloomed, cut back all the brown leaves and stems to the ground.

Eight
Fertilizer maybe added around the plants as they are growing, but they really don’t need to be fertilized.

Nine
Do not spray off the ants with water or kill them with pesticide. They seem to help the buds open, and in warm climates, the buds need to open before it gets too hot.

Ten
Don’t forget to enjoy your successful blooms! You may cut them after the first few years as more blooms have developed on larger plants. This takes longer in warm areas. The foliage and stems return nutrients to the roots for larger plants in following years.