Seeds

People have asked me, "Where are the seeds on the peony plant?"

The simple answer is, after the plant has finished blooming many cut off the spent flower during there cleanup and have lost the seed head. If you leave the plant shortly after the flowers are finished it will slowly start to grow this fuzzy 3 pronged capsule, inside each if fertilized will be a number of fat seeds.


Around mid July to early August you should start to see some of these fuzzy capsules splitting and little black, or blue balls inside. These are your seeds. Collect the seeds as soon as the pods begin to open (The harder the outer shell, the longer the first dormancy period) Using barely moist vermiculite or soil less seed mix place your seeds into a sealed plastic bag.
Place bags in a warm area of the house (not in the sun), check them every week to see if roots have emerged and ensure they are still moist (but not wet!) Roots can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months.
When roots appear and are about 2.5 cm or 1 inch in length, place them in the fridge. This is their cold period. Leave them for about 10-12 weeks, checking to see if any shoots have appeared. As soon as you see a shoot remove from fridge and pot in a soil less mix. At the 12 week stage remove partially germinated seed and pot them.
If you can, (weather permits) place them in a cold frame outside or under lights until March / April. Do not over water. Transfer outside as you would tender seedlings, making sure to have them all out in a seed bed by late summer.

Growing from seed is very time consuming taking up to 5 years for your first flower to appear. Even after this your first blooms may not convey the end result of your plant. It may take 7 years before you see the true flowers on a mature plant.

You could also sow your seed directly in the ground where natural temps provide the dormancy and growth conditions required. You may have to wait until the second spring before you see shoots. (Delay is precipitated by a hard seed coat not having enough time in fall to overcome first dormancy)

Seed sits in soil until following spring, bringing warm moist conditions to break first dormancy.
Near the end of summer roots should be produced.
Over winter seeds overcome second dormancy before producing a shoot the next spring.

Give it a try and see what happens!! I have several that should give me blooms sometime in the next year or two.

Germinating Peony Seeds

Peonies do not come true from seed. You must have named cultivars propagated vegetatively to retain their cultivar name. Some seedlings may resemble their parents, but they are not identical.

Seeds collected from species plants have an inherent variability within the population and not all are exactly alike, even in nature. Be aware that species plants grown in the garden are subject to cross pollination with other peonies that may be in bloom at the same time, but otherwise, plants grown from species seeds remain species plants.

Peony seeds can be started indoors, but, it's rather involved and it has to be started in the fall to get the timing right for planting sprouted seeldings in the spring.

By late winter it is much better to delay starting peony seeds until mid-June, perhaps as late as mid-July. The reason for this is that peony seeds have a stepped approach to germination which has evolved to maximize sprouted seeds emerging in the srping whwen they have the best chance for survival. Seeds need a lengthy warm moist period after which the root starts to grow with the onset of fall weather. The cold of winter is needed to break down barriers which otherwise prevent initiation of shoot growth. This sequence of environmental factors must occur in that order, or the seeds will not grow.

The process:
In mid-June to mid-July soak the seeds in water for up to four days. Seeds which sink are considered sound and should germinate for you. Seeds which never sink are usually hollow, and not viable.

Plant out in garden, or in a cold frame, 1" deep, 4" to 6" apart.

Water to dampen the soil and avoid letting it dry out, but, don't keep it constantly wet either.

It is best to cover the seeded area to conserve moisture, to mark the spot, and to protect against animals digging them up. They won't show above ground growth until the spring anyway, so covering won't bother them. Use a board or flat rock or something similar.

Remember to remove the covering as early as you can in the spring.

Growing from Seed

Received seeds ordered from the Canadian Peony Society and can't wait to start them. I will plant directly outside in Mid June and wait to see what happens.
The outdoor method is relatively simple: plant seed about 1" deep in well prepared bed. Most should germinate the following spring-early summer or second season. Be prepared to wait up to 5 years before the first bloom. Reminder that peonies do not come true from seed so doing it this way may provide a whole new and beautiful never before seen variety.