Please email us at info@swensongardens.com for any additional questions.

 

What are ‘intersectionals’?

Intersectional hybrid peonies are a cross between a tree peony and a herbaceous peony. They are also called Itoh hybrid. The tree peony is the pollen parent and the herbaceous peony is the pod parent. It has the flower and foliage of a tree peony and the stem strength of a herbaceous peony. Unlike the tree peony, which retains its woody stems throughout the year, the intersectional hybrid stems will die back to the ground in the fall like their herbaceous peony parent. Also, intersectional hybrid peonies will grow two to three times faster than tree peonies.

 

What are ‘garden varieties’?

Garden varieties are our definition of all herbaceous and herbaceous hybrid peonies. Their stems will die back to the ground in the fall.

 

What are ‘distinctive gardens’?

Distinctive gardens are our definition of all herbaceous and herbaceous hybrid peonies that offer far superior attributes. Some of these are newer herbaceous hybrid peonies as well as hard to find herbaceous peonies. Stem strength, extended bloom time, show quality blooms, landscape appealing foliage and new colors are some of the outstanding features. Again, their stems will die back to the ground in the fall.

 

What are ‘collector’s peonies’? From time to time we will offer very rare and often hard to find herbaceous and herbaceous hybrid peonies. Though they are often new to the average gardener, collectors’ often are more discrete on where they found some of their collections.

 

What does the term ‘landscape’ mean?

Peonies that are identified as “landscape” feature qualities that make the plant very attractive even after the blooms have expired. These peonies offer beautiful leaf formations or color, symmetrical shape, or outstanding stem color to provide a lovely backdrop for the other plants in your garden.

 

What does the term ‘cut’ mean?

Florists are noted for having wonderful cut peonies available to their customers. Though almost all peonies have been cut by gardeners, we have noted our favorites with this description.

 

How do I cut peony blooms?

Remember the 1/3 rule; wait 3-years before cutting 1/3 of the blooms and keep 2/3 of the blooms on the plant. At 5-years, okay to cut 2/3 of the blooms and keep 1/3 of the blooms on the plant. NEVER CUT OFF ALL YOUR PEONY BLOOMS! The cycle of energy has to pass through the blooms before traveling back to the roots. Cut early in the morning and let rest 30-minutes in the shade without putting them in water. After they have rested, re-cut the stems 1” above the previous cut and then place in warm water with a mixture of floral preservative and a couple of drops of bleach. Keep out of direct sunlight during the day. In the evening, place the vase in your refrigerator or a cool dark location. In the morning, remove the blooms. Wash out the vase with a 1 part bleach to 10 parts water solution, replace water as noted above and then re-cut another 1” off the stems. Continue this process until the blooms are spent.

 

What does the term ‘fragrant’ mean?

Your nose…knows! Though we note fragrant, what is sweet and scented to us, may not be to you. The joy of growing fragrant peonies is the scent it produces. After years of walking in our fields, some varieties like America, Sugar N’Spice, Bartzella, Diana Parks, Etched Salmon, Carnation Bouquet, Norma Volz and Krinkled White can be found by their smell.   

 

Do we ship potted peonies in the spring?

No. You will find colorful potted peonies available for sale in the spring at box stores and some nurseries. Most peony growers, including us, only ship bare-root peonies in the fall. Why? Because it is significantly better for the plant! Bare-root peonies reach maturity faster, are more disease resistant and will acclimate better to your site conditions.

 

When is the best time to plant bare-root peonies?

Plant six weeks before the first hard frost. Here in USDA Zone 4, we suggest early to mid-September. In USDA Zone 7 we suggest early to mid-November. The six week period allows your bare-root peonies to develop feeder roots for next summer’s new growth.

 

Is it necessary to mulch newly planted bare-root peonies?

Yes, if you are in USDA Zones 2 to 4.

No, if you are in USDA Zones 5 to 8.

 

When is the best time to mulch newly planted bare-root peonies?

Mulch after the ground has two to four inches of frost. Mulching is required to prevent the roots from heaving in late winter to early spring while the ground is thawing and re-freezing.

 

When is the best time to remove mulch in the spring?

When tulips first appear, remove half of the mulch and the remaining mulch 10 to 14 days later. The new growth will be okay if the temp dips to 20 degrees F for three consecutive nights. If it is colder than that, re-mulch and remove when temp warms up again. During years of late frosts after the blooms are set, you may lose the blooms for that year, but the plant will come back the next spring.

 

What if our newly planted bare-root peony does not come up its first spring?

As growers we too are faced with that scenario from time to time. The first thing we check is to see if there is new growth coming up under the soil. Gently remove a small amount of the soil with your bare hands until you can feel and/or see the root crown on garden peonies or red tie on intersectional hybrid peonies. Make sure the eyes or red tie are at the correct depth according to your original planting instructions. If the root has sunk, gently remove additional soil to the correct eye or red tie depth. Newly planted peonies may not survive if there are heavy rains in the fall and spring. Unfortunately, that is something over which we have no control.

 

When can we divide our peonies and share with our friends?

Definitely wait at least three years and then do not dig or divide until after September 1^st. Cut the root mass in half or quarters, retaining at least 3 to 5 eyes per section and trim the bottom roots until they are about 8 to 10 inches long. Wash off roots; dip in 1 ounce bleach to 10 gallons water, rinse, and then plant immediately.   

 

Are we interested in speaking at garden clubs, garden days and expos?

Yes! Please email us for additional information. We are available during the months of January, February, March and April. Costs vary according to your specific needs.

 

Can we visit your peony farm?

YES! Please check our blog or give us a call once we get closer to bloom time for the actual dates! One of our fields in Howard Lake will be open to the public and we can’t wait to finally meet you. This field has 1 and 2-year old plants so it will continue to mature in the years to come. Our plans are to be open from noon to 8 PM on Friday’s and 9 am to 5 PM on Saturdays. Assuming this is a normal bloom time, the peak is usually in early to mid June. For those of you who are interested, we are also thinking about giving peony dividing demonstrations on our pick up days in September. The dates for pick up orders are the 5^th and 12^th of September from 9 am to 5 PM. Please email or call us if this is of interest to you.

 

Our peony did not bloom in its second year. What should we do?

The first step is to determine the amount of sun the plant has received. If it gets less than 8 hours of sun, you should move plant to a sunnier location. Second, if the location has sufficient sun, after the foliage is cut down in the fall, carefully remove about 1 to 2 inches of dirt around the stems. Your peony may have sunk or been planted too deep. Wait until the next spring to see if it has bloomed. If not, you should dig it up and replant it. Make sure to cut roots off so they are 8 to 10 inches long. This will encourage new growth.

 

Our peony buds turned brown and did not flower. What should we do?

Sometimes a late frost may damage your buds. If that is the case, you will have to wait until next year to see blooms. If you did not have a late frost, this may also be a sign that your root was planted too deep. Carefully remove 1 to 2 inches of dirt around the stems after the foliage has been cut down in the fall.

 

What are some organic fertilizers we SHOULDN’T use?

Both blood meal and composted sheep manure release nitrogen too quickly and may cause your plants to burn. We do not recommend composted horse manure either, although our horse loving customers may disagree. The nitrogen overload is a concern, as well as the tremendous amount of weed seed germination if the compost is not wintered over for a couple of years.

 

What are some organic fertilizers we CAN use?

We love bone meal! It releases nitrogen at a slower rate and provides micro-organism growth.

We also love composted cow manure as it releases slower and welcomes micro-organisms.

Now don’t be alarmed, but we recommend sewer sludge. Milorganite is the brand name. It absolutely will not burn and releases slowly, as well as adding trace elements that encourage micro-organisms. For our “clay bound” friends, use pelletized gypsum as an amendment agent. Because it is a mined mineral, it is still considered organic. Amend at a rate of 2 cups per hole into your excavated soil. No need to apply again.  Last but not least, for those who have been to our presentations you know our secret…sorry, but now the whole world will know…cocoa bean shells are an additional amendment agent. Add a couple of shovel scoops to your excavated dirt, mix well, and add back into your hole. Why is that important? Because most of the peony varieties are probably female, they LOVE chocolate! Seriously, if you want award winning blooms, try it sometime!

 

We would like to grow our peonies organically, but, oh, those pesky weeds! Now what?

Dear fellow gardener, we too face that dilemma, but to the extreme! Say 10,000+ plants! The hours we put into removing weeds truly are a labor of love. For us, with outside help, it can be done. However, the costs involved doing this are quite high. This is also one of the main reasons why some of our plants may be higher in cost than the other chemical, fungicide and herbicide loving growers, nurseries and garden centers. Here’s a hint: landscape fabric! Not the cheap stuff, but professional grade fabric that still allows water to pass through and air circulation to dry out the ground. Make sure you leave a large enough area open to let the stems grow and expand in that area as your peony matures. You can also add a thin layer of shredded wood mulch, but keep it away from the stems. You’ll still have to hand weed, but now area is smaller.

 

What is the best PH level for peonies?

First and foremost, test your soil. Hand kits are available for $5 to $10. We like anywhere from 6.8 to 7.2 ph level. Now that said, we have also noticed greater root growth below neutral (7.0 ph) and greater bloom growth at 7.0 to 7.2 ph.

 

Why are the intersectional hybrid peonies selling at such a varied degree of pricing?

Thank you for asking!!! First of all, we knew this was coming due to the tissue culture (“TC”) cloned plants that are being imported into the US. Many different catalogs, nurseries and garden centers are beginning to sell these test tube plants. We bought 100 of these TC peonies five years ago just to see what they would do. Out of those 100, we lost 20% of them and then found that some plants were not even true to name. This was especially disappointing after waiting four years for the first blooms to appear. It provided an educational example for many of our garden club tours and to us! Our old fashioned way of growing chemical- free plants were 2-3 years ahead of the TC plants. Also, we had the disdain task last fall of digging up some of the original TC plants only to find a tangled root mass of exorbitant waste. So much waste, in fact, that 80 to 90% of the roots had to be removed in order to get to the crown. With that much of a tangled mess, we should have left a few in the ground just to test their longevity. Unfortunately, though, we didn’t, so again this is only a hypothesis. We are also seeing other growers trying to compete for that business by reducing prices because they are able to grow peonies much faster than us with added chemicals and stimulants. We are staying on course by selling our customers the highest quality bare root peony. So many of you have commented on the immense size of our roots. Thank you for noticing the difference! We are more concerned with storage root size vs. the number of eyes. Some of our roots may have over 7 to 10 eyes each, but we still need to back up the eyes with storage roots to support next year’s growth. When we sell our 3 to 5 eye bare roots, they are actually graded at a level 4 or 5, of which 5 is the highest. Some growers, nurseries and garden centers are selling 3 to 5 eye bare roots that are grade 1. We call them “stubs”. Finally, some peonies are being brokered into the US from unidentified locations. That is why you need to be careful before investing in these particular peonies. Don’t be afraid to ask some very pointed questions like: “Have these plants ALWAYS been grown in your fields? At ANY time were they tissue culture raised? At ANY time were they grown or nurtured in a greenhouse? Did you broker these plants?” We GUARANTEE our customers that everything we sell is grown and raised in our fields in Delano and Howard Lake, Minnesota.

 

Should we remove the spent blooms?

Yes, as long as you wait at least 2 – 3 weeks after the last bloom has deceased and turned brown. Most people like to tidy their plants up by removing the spent blooms. From an aesthetic perspective, it also shows off the bush/shrub-like characteristics of our varieties noted as “landscape”. 

 

How can we plant your newer varieties where some of our old peonies are now?

Make sure you have someone help you who has a very strong back! For each original peony, excavate a three foot cubic area and move the dirt well away from any possible contact with that site. Add one foot of good topsoil to the hole. We suggest certified weed-free topsoil. Water in the site and then prepare the site as noted in our peony care section.