The Symbolism of Peonies, How to Grow Them, and Key Points to Note

Known as the "queen of flowers," the "peony" has always been the king of flowers in everyone's hearts. Its opulent and elegant bearing after blooming symbolizes nobility and good fortune, and it is an important symbol of traditional Chinese culture.

Generally speaking, peony flowers are very common in the flower market. Taking fresh cut flowers as an example, 10 stems cost within 20 yuan, so how do you choose fresh cut flowers? First, check whether the buds have broken heads; second, try to choose a deeper flower color; and do not choose ones with sticky liquid at the base. If it meets the above points, it is fresh flower material. After taking it home and unpacking it, first give it a deep-water awakening, soaking for about 2 hours. If you are in a hurry to use the flower material, at this point you can peel open its calyx, which can help it bloom faster. After the flowers have awakened, take them out and tidy them up, removing excess leaves and keeping just 1-2 ornamental leaves. After tidying up, take a vase you like, add 2/3 water to it, and instead of adding preservative you can add a little 84 disinfectant. Hold the flowers in your hand using a spiral technique, and cut the stems at a slant, upper left and lower right. Finally, just quietly wait for the flowers to open, then change the original deep water level to a shallow water level to prevent the flowers from opening too quickly. After that, change the water once a day and avoid direct sunlight.

If you want to enjoy the beauty of peonies more, then flower lovers had best choose potted planting, because in a suitable environment the peony's flowering period can last about a month. So what should you pay attention to when caring for peonies at home on a daily basis? First, for soil selection, you can choose sandy loam or leaf mold, and when potting you can also put a layer of small stones or tile pieces at the bottom of the pot to aid drainage. For daily watering, just keep the soil moist. In spring and autumn, water once a week; in summer it may need to be more frequent; and in winter reduce watering to prevent the roots from freezing injury.

Then, in normal times you can place the peony in a place with ample sunlight. Never put it in a dark place, as this can easily cause bud abortion and failure to bloom. As for temperature, peonies like a cool climate, but they are also afraid of severe cold, and they are not tolerant of high temperatures, so in summer be careful to shade them and cool them down.

Finally, fertilizing is an indispensable part of growing flowers. In the spring and summer growing seasons, you can apply a fertilizer rich in phosphorus and potassium once a month, and in winter stop fertilizing. In addition, prune after flowering each spring, cutting off dead branches, diseased and pest-infested branches, and overly dense branches, to help ventilation and light penetration and the formation of new flower buds.