Gardening Tip: Peony Support
I love peonies. I am absolutely besotted with these gorgeous extravagant flowers. We have two kinds in the front garden. The flamboyant magenta ones, with their heart of gold. And the fluffy, fragrant pale pink ones, graceful like ballet dancers in their frothy tutus. They make lovely bouquets and Jules and I adore them; but the problem with these lovely flowers is that they grow decadent blooms on long, thin stalks. They might look magnificent one moment, and a gust of wind or a sudden rain shower; and they flop down to the ground. And my friends, it is a sorry sight. Every year I lament on it and try to save some from their downwards fate; or I pick as many as I can as soon as they bloom to avoid it. But I wish I could leave them in the garden, in company of other Summer flowers.
Thus, this year, I’ve decided to try and to something about it and built a Peony Support.
When I say built, I mean I removed the evergreens and spruce and fir from one of my Festive Wreath, which I had hung in the apple tree (for birds to nest in o play in, originally; but they seemed unimpressed!) Then, I tied four bamboo stakes, the kind that comes with climbing flowers such as passiflora or clematis at the garden centre, with twine to the Wreath frame. I tried to wedge them between the forsythia twigs forming the Wreath frame, for better support, and tied them with double knots.
Finally, after removing the layer of old stalks and leave I covered them with in the Winter, I planted the Support in the ground, ecompassing as many as the new shoots as it could. It won’t hold them all in, but at least, many will be saved from a disgracious downfall, and the other ones, I shall pick first!
And I may build a few more of these, with a larger hoop for the other peony shrubs!