If you are buying mail-order bare roots, expect rather slow growth in the first year or two.
Ground-level soaking is generally better than overhead watering, which can splash fungal spores from plant to plant.
Soil
Be sure to plant Itoh peonies in rich, well-drained soil.
The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova
These plants react badly when planted in dense, water-retentive soil.
see to it to amend with plenty of organic matter if your soil is not porous.
But in addition, Itoh hybrids work well in warmer climates, such as the temperatures in zone 8.
The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova
Itoh peonies tolerate a range of humidity levels, though prolonged cool, humid conditions can encourage fungal diseases.
Itoh peonies seem to particularly enjoyfoliar feedingwith a water-soluble fertilizer.
Like herbaceous peonies, Itoh peonies will come back in the spring from the ground.
The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova
Propagating Itoh Peonies
Root division is the traditionally effective method of propagating all Itoh peonies.
It will take a couple of years for the replanted pieces to settle in and become vigorous again.
Root division is the only practical means of propagation.
The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova
The pot should also have excellent drainage.
Overwintering
ensure the plants are well-watered in the weeks leading up to frost.
Remove and dispose of the plant’s leaves before winter sets in, to avoid fungal spores from overwintering.
The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova
No other winter protection is neededmulch can work against the plant’s health.
With a bare root plant, it can sometimes take a couple of years before it blooms robustly.
What Do Itoh Peony Flowers Look and Smell Like?
If you’ve mistakenly pinched off the young buds during deadheading duties, your peony will lose potential flowers.
Botrytis can be cured if caught early, sometimes merely by cutting off and destroying affected plant parts.
A variety of fungicides can also kill the disease.
Leaf Splotches and Spots
These symptoms are generally a sign of some key in of fungal infection.
Such infections are rarely fatal and can be handled by removing and destroying affected plant parts.
Keep the ground area free of debris to prevent the fungi from overwintering and returning next year.
Severe cases can be treated with a systemic fungicide.
Ants are drawn to peonies because of the sweet nectar but do not eat or harm the flowers.
Ignore the ants, or shake or brush them off before harvesting the flowers for indoor use.
As with mostpeony species, these plants make beautiful additions to cut flower arrangements.
They are considered easy to grow, remarkably beautiful, and even have a fragrant lemon scent.
They can often be found in perennial borders or mixed with other shrubs in hedges.
Itoh peonies also work as a stand-alone specimen.
The initial successes did not grow into viable flowering specimens for more than a decade.
It was not until 1964 that the first-named cultivars were patentedyears after Toichi Itoh passed away.
Like other peonies, the Itoh is a very long-lived perennial.
Some of the original breeding specimens are still alive, and 50-year-old plants are common.
Cut the stems before the flowers have opened, when the marble-sized buds still feel slightly hard.
Place the stems in water and allow the flowers to gradually open.
As you harvest, be sure to never reduce a plant’s overall foliage by more than one-third.
Peony.ASPCA
The Beloved Peony.PennState University Extension
Peony Diseases.PennState University Extension
