Is this Paeonia plant salvagable? Transplant gone wrong.?
Question:I tried to dig up a Paeonia plant and found the roots were so deep I brought it up in chunks as I tried to avoid damaging plants around it. So now I have chunks of root - broke all the stems off. Will a new plant grow from a chunk of root?
Answers:
Peonies are not like most perennials when it comes time to transplant. They do best when transplanted in late summer/early fall. Cut the stems off. Remove as much of the root as possible. You can divide the root down to a section with 3-5 eyes. If your root sections have 3-5 eyes, there's a chance, but you have done this in the wrong time of the season. Here are a few good links that discuss transplanting peonies. Good luck!
http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/askextensi...
http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/hortnews/...
http://www.pallensmith.com/newsletter/ma...
I think you are okay as long as each chuck of roots have any eye. Replant them in a different area even with the soil surface (not 2-3 inches as packages tell you). Where the stems came up were the eyes. They will probably not come back this year but maybe next year. Maybe a few year before blooming as before. Good luck!
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