Putting Them to Bed

They are my most treasured flowers. When I am told I can't do something or that it's not possible, count on me to do my best to prove you wrong.  So it is with my peonies.  They are not native to Texas, but once I saw them in an old friend's yard I was hooked.

That was 25 years ago.  I am now at 13 plants and as the winters grow colder here the blooms get better.  Two years ago I had 96 blooms on those plants. Stunning!

But each fall, and it is almost always a Novemver 1st ritual, they must be " put to bed".  The stalks are cut to the ground and as much of the plant remnants removed.  In the next days the bed will be raked and cleared and fresh mulch layed down for the cold months ahead.

In the spring the rose red buds will inch their way up and become tall shoots once again.  It is a time of year I treasure and my girls know it as " peony watch"!

For now I take care to tuck them in for a long winter's nap:)))