After growing peonies for wholesale cut flower markets for almost 20 years I have to say that cutting 20 stems per plant is a very unrealistic expectation. You’d be doing very well at half that number.
Maybe in years & years & in the petfect climate, eventually... My mom has some that are about 30 years old & they produce about 15-20 per plant. But they haven't been divided in over 10+ years & she doesn't harvest hers for cutflowers either. I feel like it will take longer if you're cutting them, because they're not going to have all that foliage to regenerate their energy.
Exactly. It depends on the variety, also. Some varieties are very floriferous and 10-15 stems is possible, with three feedings a year. Fertilizers are not free, neither was the fabric and the divisions. I know a peony grower who told me that he wasn’t profitable until he had six acres of mature plants. And, he was retired, so his efforts (planting, feeding, weeding and cutting, etc., was free.
You are on the right track! An initial till is usually the norm to get the new bed started. I encountered the same thing even though our field has been in hay production for last 10 yrs. I had to break through with a light till. Would love to see your peony baby progress update!
Thank you for the lead on where to purchase peonies. I’m looking at Johnny’s (they don’t sell peonies), Holland Bulb & Burpees the prices are wayyy higher than where you got yours. They are a family run business too with an interesting back story. I had never heard of that company so thanks again!
I’m guessing you already figured out that a butane torch works better on woven ground cloth when cutting than a razor blade and keeps it from unraveling.
We use a torch for the holes in the field but i wanted to purposefully cut Xs for the peonies rather than much larger open holes for the weeds to grow in.
@@CoramDeoFarm I use a pencil type butane torch that I believe would work fairly well for the X’s. I understand the reason for the razor blade, but the unraveling…. Thanks for responding back, I enjoy your insights into flower farming.
After growing peonies for wholesale cut flower markets for almost 20 years I have to say that cutting 20 stems per plant is a very unrealistic expectation. You’d be doing very well at half that number.
Maybe in years & years & in the petfect climate, eventually... My mom has some that are about 30 years old & they produce about 15-20 per plant. But they haven't been divided in over 10+ years & she doesn't harvest hers for cutflowers either. I feel like it will take longer if you're cutting them, because they're not going to have all that foliage to regenerate their energy.
Exactly. It depends on the variety, also. Some varieties are very floriferous and 10-15 stems is possible, with three feedings a year. Fertilizers are not free, neither was the fabric and the divisions. I know a peony grower who told me that he wasn’t profitable until he had six acres of mature plants. And, he was retired, so his efforts (planting, feeding, weeding and cutting, etc., was free.
You are on the right track! An initial till is usually the norm to get the new bed started. I encountered the same thing even though our field has been in hay production for last 10 yrs. I had to break through with a light till. Would love to see your peony baby progress update!
Thank you for the lead on where to purchase peonies. I’m looking at Johnny’s (they don’t sell peonies), Holland Bulb & Burpees the prices are wayyy higher than where you got yours. They are a family run business too with an interesting back story. I had never heard of that company so thanks again!
❤ alex...the cutest flower farmer on youtube ❤
so sweet
That’s crazy how the green grass was growing under the fabric
I'm a wedding coordinator in MS and our florist gets peonies wholesale for 9.00 a stem.
Wowza!
9 $ ?
I’m guessing you already figured out that a butane torch works better on woven ground cloth when cutting than a razor blade and keeps it from unraveling.
We use a torch for the holes in the field but i wanted to purposefully cut Xs for the peonies rather than much larger open holes for the weeds to grow in.
@@CoramDeoFarm I use a pencil type butane torch that I believe would work fairly well for the X’s. I understand the reason for the razor blade, but the unraveling…. Thanks for responding back, I enjoy your insights into flower farming.
@@darastrout1574 oh interesting! I didn’t know that existed. I might look in to that for our next planting. Thank you!
What is your wholesale source for peonies?
Linked in description ☺️
Shouldn't you have tilled the soil bfore laying out the landscape fab?
You need a torch for the hoIes!
We did till and we explained in the video why we chose this method…
I wish people would stop recommending this plastic fabric.
I’m happy to let others farm their property how they want to
@@CoramDeoFarm if you want to be a public figure people will point out problems.
@@sarahpauline4904sounds like our channel isn’t for you. That’s ok. Hope you find other content to enjoy