Content
Feeding peonies after flowering is necessary for every gardener who grows them in his or her personal plot. This is done because to obtain lush greenery and beautiful buds, nutrients are required that are not always present in the soil. The plant should be provided with a complex of minerals three times per season, and the last time it is better to feed the peonies in October. It is not advisable to neglect the procedure; this may negatively affect the condition and appearance of the crop.
Peonies bloom lasts no more than 2-3 weeks
The need to feed peonies after flowering
The herbaceous perennial decorates flower beds with fragrant flowers for a short time, a maximum period of 2-3 weeks. After flowering, the petals fall off and the inflorescences dry out. The crop spends a lot of energy at this time, and in order for it to please with an abundant number of buds and exude a delicate aroma next year, it is necessary to bring it back to normal. To do this, gardeners fertilize peonies in August.
In the first half of the month, it is enough to add mullein diluted with water or an infusion of wood ash in a ratio of 1:10. It is also useful to treat the soil with superphosphate (25 g) and potassium sulfate (12 g) diluted in 10 liters of water after flowering. Solutions must be poured into grooves made around the base of the bush.
To prevent fungal diseases, you can feed peonies with preparations containing copper, for example, Borodos liquid and tableted complexes of microelements.
Types of fertilizer for peonies in autumn
Autumn feeding of peonies for the winter involves the use of organic or mineral fertilizers. For complete nutrition, it is better to use them together:
- At the beginning of autumn, before pruning, the crop must be fed with minerals.
- After pruning - animal and plant organic matter.
After flowering, many people use folk remedies to nourish plants, the effectiveness of which has long been proven in practice.
If you add nitrogenous fertilizers to the soil in the fall, provoking the development of green mass, then the flower, instead of preparing for winter, will spend energy on growth, weaken and may even die.
Fertilizers should not get into the middle of the rhizome
Timing for feeding peonies in autumn before winter
Autumn feeding of peonies and preparation for winter should be carried out within certain periods. After flowering - at the end of August or beginning of September and before winter - until the second half of October. Fertilizers are applied taking into account climatic conditions and the age of the flowers. The last time they need to be fed is 30 days before the arrival of frost.
If you plan to engage in reproduction, then the procedure must be completed in the first half of September. This way the root system will have time to strengthen before the cold weather.
Feeding is carried out in stages:
- In August - after flowering.
- In early September - before pruning.
- In mid-September (October) - after pruning.
How to fertilize peonies in the fall
Of the minerals, after flowering, it is best to feed the perennial:
- potassium magnesium – 20 g;
- superphosphate – 30 g;
- potassium monophosphate – 50 g;
- potassium sulfate – 20 g.
The dosage is used per square meter of soil.
The following organic fertilizers are usually used in the fall:
- 150 g bone meal - scatter under a bush and dig in;
- humus/compost 8 kg – mulch the ground under the leaves;
- wood ash 200 g - scatter around the stems or pour in the form of a solution.
From proven folk remedies you can feed:
- tea leaves - 100 g;
- coffee grounds – 150 ml;
- rye infusion – 1 l;
- eggshells – 500 ml;
- banana peel flour – 200 g.
How to feed peonies in the fall when transplanting, planting
Once every 5 years, the plant needs to be replanted for abundant flowering and rejuvenation. It is advisable to carry out these actions after flowering, in September, feeding peonies during the procedure in order to provide them with substances responsible for development and growth. It is advisable to fertilize the place for planting or transplanting with superphosphate. In addition, a mixture of three parts compost and one part wood ash should be placed in each hole.
Fertilizing can be combined with replanting or pruning
How to feed peonies after pruning
Before snow falls, the part of the crop located above the ground must be cut off, and the bare buds at the base of the stems must be hilled up. Fertilize the bush and sprinkle the cutting area with ash.
It is advisable to feed peonies in the fall after pruning with organic matter rich in various components. Vegetable compost or manure is perfect for this. You just need to put the composition around the stems and leave it there to rot on its own. In this way, the plant will receive a dosed amount of nutrients and will be protected from freezing, since heat is released when the manure decomposes. As an additive, you can use a mixture of bone meal and ash in a 2:3 ratio. Also, many gardeners, after trimming peonies, advise feeding them with the preparation “Baikal EM-1”, bread infusion, banana or potato peels, onion peels, whey and nettles.
Peonies need to be fertilized a month before frost.
How to fertilize peonies in the fall before winter, before covering
Peonies are highly frost-resistant; many varieties can withstand temperatures down to -40 °C. For this reason, adult bushes are not dug up or covered for the winter, although experienced gardeners still recommend protecting the crop from frost with sawdust, pine spruce branches, old compost or peat.
Before sheltering, the plant must be fed with any organic fertilizer that will create a good supply of nutrition in the soil and root. Its advantage lies in its rich composition, which includes potassium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, as well as beneficial bacteria.
Before winter, a solution made from rye bread or eggshells works well. To prepare such a tincture, you need to grind a loaf of the product, pour the crumbs into 10 liters of water, and leave for 12 hours. Pour the finished fertilizer under the bush in an amount of 1 liter.To make an egg tincture, you need to soak the shells of 20 eggs in a bucket of water for 3 days. Then water at the rate of half a liter per bush.
Immediately before the shelter, compost, humus, manure and dry tree leaves should be scattered on the surface of the ground. There is no need to embed anything into the ground.
Before mulching, the soil can be sprinkled with wood ash or bone meal, the main thing is not to get it on the neck of the plant.
Rules for autumn feeding of peonies
Basically, the rules for feeding peonies for the winter depend on their age and the climate of the region where they grow. In the fall, only those plants that have been growing for 3 years or more need to be fed. Moreover, the older the flower, the more useful elements it requires. Young bushes after flowering do not need additional fertilizer before winter. It is also worth noting that if autumn is dry, then it is better to dilute potassium phosphate compounds with water according to the instructions and water the roots with them. A liter of solution per bush will be enough. In rainy weather, it is wise to use granular fertilizers, which will enter the ground gradually. They are scattered in a circle near the trunk, lightly sprinkled with soil.
The type of fertilizers that can be used to feed bushes in the fall is chosen depending on the composition of the soil:
- For slightly acidic and alkaline soil, it is better to use superphosphate.
- For depleted and sandy soil, organic matter and green manure are more suitable, since an excess amount of minerals can cause growth inhibition.
Peonies respond equally well to both mineral and organic fertilizers
Conclusion
Feeding peonies after flowering is not difficult even for a novice gardener. The main thing is to strictly follow all recommendations and follow the rules.Peonies are a perennial, unpretentious plant that can be planted once and, with proper care, enjoyed in bloom for several seasons.
