Peony bloom season is over… now what?
The number one question we’ve gotten this week… “What do you do now that peony season is over?”
It’s true, life for us slows down quite a bit now that the peony bloom season is over. In fact, I actually took a nap on Sunday afternoon after we closed. Peony season is hard work!
But even though the flowers are done blooming and our farm shop is only open Saturdays there’s still quite a bit to do on the farm.
Here’s a few tasks that continue through the summer and into fall
Manage weeds (especially wild parsnip) by cutting off the blooms to prevent the plants from going to seed and by mowing through the ros of the peony field.
Remove seed heads from peonies.
Regularly move goats and chickens to help tackle invasive and aggressive species in our woods.
Mow the lawn. (Thank goodness we have a teenager from our 4-H group that helps us out with this one!)
Continue with social media and weekly email so we stay in touch with all of you!
Keep up on our vegetable and gardens.
Can, freeze and process the fruits and veggies we grow and don’t eat fresh.
Construct a new high tunnel for fruit and vegetable production.
And maybe most importantly we get to enjoy some family time before summer completely flies by. We are looking forward to the demo derby in a nearby town later this week!
Once fall comes we begin the busy harvest season of digging, washing, dividing and shipping the bare roots peonies!
And for you… a quick checklist for peonies now that the blooms are done.
Deadhead the spent flowers for a cleaner look to the plant for the rest of the season. You don’t have to do this, but if you don’t plan to grow peonies from seed, cutting off the seed heads will also allow more energy to go to the roots of the plant for a better performance next year. (Note: Not all varieties produce seeds.)
Keep an eye out for any fungal or disease issues and remedy those immediately if they do pop up!
If you want to fertilize, use one application of an organic bulb fertilizer now and plan to do so again around Labor Day.
Especially with newly planted peonies, water if you experience a period of drought.