Leave your peonies alone and reap the rewards as they multiply year after year
Ketsuda Phoutinane Spare Time Content Editor
06:07, 19 Apr 2026
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Growing peonies can be easy, Alan said, if you follow two requirements(Image: Getty)
The peony flowering season is brief but marvellous. Their gloriously ruffled and fragrant blooms unfold in a ‘blink-and-you-miss-it’ moment in spring.
Be that as it may, peony bushes are hardy perennials that can last decades. Fortunately, the plants don’t seem to mind the UK’s changeable climate and to top it off, Alan Titchmarsh says they love lazy gardeners.
In his book My Secret Garden, Alan rhapsodised about the beauty of these flowers. He says there are just two major things gardeners need to know in order to grow peonies successfully.
“For me, they are prized treasures, not to be spurned, but to be anticipated eagerly, as although they may bloom only fleetingly, they are all the more appreciated,” he wrote.
“These firework plants are the leavening of the loaf, a fleeting treat without which life would be all the poorer.”
How to grow peonies, according to Alan Titchmarsh
Peony bushes can live and flower for decades(Image: Getty)
1. Don’t bury peony plants too deeply
Growing peonies can be easy if you take heed of two things, Alan said. The first of which is about how deeply they should be planted, which is not much at all.
The expert advised: “The most critical of these is planting depth. When committing a pot-grown peony to the earth, on no account bury it too deeply, for to do so will surely deprive you of flowers for many a year.
“The yam-like roots (massive, sweet-potato lookalikes) need to be only fractionally below the surface of the soil.”
2. Stop splitting them up
“Peonies love lazy gardeners.”(Image: Getty)
Good news if you’re not much of a gardener — Alan says it pays to leave them alone. Unlike other herbaceous perennials, Alan noted that peonies don’t need to be dug up and divided every three or four years.
Just give them time and you’ll be rewarded with peonies that grow bigger all on their own.
As per Alan’s sage advice: “Peonies love lazy gardeners who leave their clumps alone, to fatten and grow more generous with the years.”
More peony gardening advice
These plants and their giant flowers don’t require too much — just to be placed in a spot with full-sun and well-drained soil.
As winter draws to a close in March, Alan recommended two things to encourage blooms: a sprinkle of rose fertiliser and a mulch made of well-rotted manure or garden compost.
“Then, in April, when their almost prehistoric-looking shoots of red and maroon start to push up from the soil, you can wait with bated breath to see how many flowers they will produce.”
Comments are closed.