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It is necessary to feed peonies after flowering for every gardener who breeds them in his personal plot. This is because it requires nutrients that are not always present in the soil to produce lush greenery and beautiful buds. 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 can negatively affect the condition and appearance of the culture.
Peony bloom lasts no more than 2-3 weeks
The need to feed peonies after flowering
Herbaceous perennial decorates flower beds with fragrant flowers for a short time, the maximum period is 2-3 weeks. After flowering, the petals crumble, the inflorescences dry out. Culture at this time spends a lot of energy and, so that next year it will please with an abundant number of buds and exude a delicate aroma, it is necessary to bring it back to normal. For this, gardeners carry out feeding of 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. Also, after flowering, it is useful to treat the soil with superphosphate (25 g) and potassium sulfate (12 g) diluted in 10 liters of water. The solutions must be poured into the grooves made around the base of the bush.
For the prevention of fungal diseases, peonies can be fed with preparations containing copper, for example, Borodossky liquid and tableted complexes of microelements.
Fertilizers for peonies in autumn
Autumn feeding of peonies for the winter involves the use of organic or mineral fertilizers. For good nutrition, it is better to use them together:
- At the beginning of autumn, before pruning, the culture must be fed with minerals.
- After pruning - animal and plant organic matter.
Many people use folk remedies after flowering to feed 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 even die.
Fertilizers should not fall into the middle of the rhizome
The timing of feeding peonies in the fall before winter
Autumn feeding of peonies and preparation for winter should be carried out at a certain time. After flowering - in late August or early September and before winter - until the second half of October. Fertilizers are applied taking into account the climatic conditions and the age of the flowers. The last time they need to be fed 30 days before the arrival of frost.
If you plan to start breeding, then the procedure must be completed in the first half of September. So the root system will have time to get stronger before the cold weather.
Top dressing 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 autumn
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.
Of organic fertilizers in the fall, they usually use:
- bone meal 150 g - sprinkle under a bush and dig in;
- humus / compost 8 kg - mulch the soil under the leaves;
- wood ash 200 g - scatter around the stems or pour as a solution.
From proven folk remedies, you can feed:
- tea leaves - 100 g;
- coffee grounds - 150 ml;
- rye infusion - 1 l;
- eggshell - 500 ml;
- banana peel flour - 200 g.
How to feed peonies in the fall when transplanting, planting
Once every 5 years, for abundant flowering and rejuvenation, the plant must be transplanted. It is advisable to carry out these actions after flowering, in September, to feed the 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.
Top dressing can be combined with transplanting or pruning
How to feed peonies after pruning
Before the snow falls, the part of the culture that is above the ground must be cut off, and the bare buds at the base of the stems should be spud. Fertilize the bush, sprinkle the cut with ash from above.
Feed the peonies in the fall after pruning, preferably with organic matter rich in various components. Plant 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. Thus, the plant will receive a metered amount of nutrients and will be protected from freezing, since heat is generated during the decomposition of manure. As an additive, you can use a mixture of bone meal and ash in a 2: 3 ratio. Also, many gardeners, after pruning peonies, advise feeding them with the preparation "Baikal EM-1", bread infusion, peel from bananas or potatoes, onion husks, whey and nettle.
It is necessary to fertilize peonies a month before frost
How to fertilize peonies in the fall before winter, before shelter
Peonies are highly frost-resistant, many varieties can withstand temperatures down to -40 °C. For this reason, adult bushes do not dig up or cover for the winter, although experienced flower growers still recommend protecting the culture 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.
A solution of rye bread or eggshells is well suited for winter. To prepare such a tincture, you need to grind a loaf of the product, pour the crumbs into 10 liters of water, insist for 12 hours. Pour the finished fertilizer under the bush in the amount of 1 liter. To make an egg tincture, you need to keep the shell of 20 eggs in a bucket of water for 3 days. Then water at the rate of half a liter per bush.
Scatter compost, humus, manure and dry tree foliage immediately in front of the shelter on the ground. You do not need to cover anything in the ground.
Before mulching, the soil can be sprinkled with wood ash or bone meal, the main thing is not to get on the neck of the plant.
Rules for the autumn feeding of peonies
Basically, the rules for feeding peonies for the winter depend on their age and the climate of the growing region. In the fall, only those plants that grow for 3 years or more are required to feed. Moreover, the older the flower, the more useful elements it needs. Young bushes after flowering do not need additional fertilization before winter. It is also worth noting that if the autumn is dry, then it is better to dilute the potassium-phosphate compositions 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 top dressing, which will gradually enter the ground. They are scattered in the near-trunk circle, lightly sprinkled with soil.
The type of fertilizer that can be used to feed the bushes in autumn is chosen depending on the composition of the soil:
- For slightly acidic and alkaline soils, 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 inhibit growth.
Peonies react 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 clearly follow all the recommendations and follow the rules. Peonies are an unpretentious perennial plant that needs to be planted once and with proper care, enjoy its flowering for several seasons.
