Mostly I grow species peonies that need no staking. My P. lactiflora plants are single flower varities so they are not as top heavy as some. As a result I never bother with wire hoops or fancy staking concepts. Jan Riggenbach, whose excellent Midwest Gardening column ran in The Capital Times for many years, suggested this simple technique which I've used ever since.
When the peonies are still in the bud stage, take a length of jute and tie the stems in a fairly tight bouquet about 2/3 of the way upn the stems. I usually just tie the jute in a bow so I can untie it in the fall and reuse it. Grouping the stems like this is akin to using a wire support, but you don't have to find space to store all those cages in the winter. The growing foliage completely hides the jute and it looks like your peonies are standing proudly on their own.
I am absolutely horrible about staking anything. So invariably, everything flops and then I try to find something to stand them up again. This method is so simple I think even I could remember to do it. Jan's column appears in the Journal now and I'm happy to catch it there on Sundays.
Posted by: Erin @ The Impatient Gardener | Monday, June 23, 2014 at 02:49 PM
I think the idea of tying is a much nicer one that hoop supports and more cost effective. We gardeners would much rather spend our money on plants.
Posted by: Jenny | Monday, June 23, 2014 at 06:57 PM