Faced with winter at my doorstep and my Peonies (Paeonia) in need of division, I remembered back to my first time dividing these spring beauties. At that time I was a novice gardener and was overwhelmed on how to handle them. I had heard so many horror tales and the intranet was not what it is today so exact information was hard to get.

Peony (Paeonia) division can be completed in a few short easy to follow steps. Working with clean tools and being careful not to transfer disease or fungal infections from any ill plants to healthy ones is one of the most important aspects of the transfer although tricky is easy enough to avoid.

How To Divide Peonies

1. Prepare a site for the divided Peonies, making sure the area has good light and is somewhere you can enjoy the Peonies fragrance and beauty daily during the blooming season. Keep in mind that Peonies do not like to be disturbed as they have a fine root system and only need to be divided every 4-5 years.

2. Cut back your summer stalks to about four inches with a sharp clean pruner. Remove and discard all leaves from the growing area, this is done to discourage any fungal or disease growth that may transfer from Peony to Peony.

3. Dig a wide area around the Peony crown making sure to try not to damage the tender buds and to get enough of the root as possible.

4. Remove as much soil from the crown area as possible by using a hose or gentle spray faucet. I like to place the roots that need to be  cleaned in a 5 gallon bucket of water to presoak off some of the soil while I work on the others. I then use another 5 gallon bucket for the cleaned roots to drain and air dry a bit before I begin to divide them. 

5. At this point there is usually a tangle of roots and buds. Looking at the buds separate the crowns by leaving at least one but three eyes is best of buds on each section that is separated out. I have some that may have only one eye or bud and some with two or three, its more how nature has laid out the Peony crown and its not always accurate or easy to cut so many two or three eyed sections.

6. Cut the sections into 4-6 inch lengths with the buds intact using a clean knife or clippers. Keeping the clippers or knife clean at this point is fairly easy and can be done by making a bleach and water solution of a 9 part (water) - 1 part (bleach) ratio and then dipping your cutting utensil in the solution between cuts.

7. The sections you have made by are now ready to be planted in the ground.

8. Place the crown with the buds  upwards just above the soil line. Peonies have the hardest time transferring well when they are placed to deeply in the ground; so correct placement no deeper then 2 inches is paramount to a successful division. That's it!