Peony of the Maxim Festival: description and characteristics of the variety, features of planting and care

Peonies are one of the most beautiful flowers that bloom at the beginning of summer. They decorate not only the garden, but are also suitable for cutting and arranging bouquets. There are a large number of different hybrids of these flowers, one of them is the Maxima Festival peony.

Description and features

The history of this variety began in Europe, or rather, in France in 1851, when breeders managed to bring out a snow-white peony hybrid. Since then, the Festiva Maxima variety began to spread throughout Europe and beyond, where climatic conditions made it possible to grow these flowers. Peonies are perennial herbaceous plants. In height, the bushes grow to almost 1 m. The inflorescences are of a terry type, white in color. There are red stripes along the edges of the petals.

The inflorescence itself is very large, reaching about 20 cm in diameter. A large number of flowers bloom on the bush. The flowering period falls on June and lasts 10-14 days.

Landing

Planting peonies is no different from planting other flower crops. You just need to choose the right place and soil mixture for planting the plant.

Choosing a seat

Festiva Maxim's peony prefers to grow in open sunny areas. In partial shade and shade, the culture develops poorly. Inflorescences bloom small in size, not very lush. It is also worth choosing places that will be protected from strong winds.

Soil Requirements

He althy and bushy peonies can only grow in fertile soil.It is not recommended to plant plants where groundwater is located nearby. Because of this, peonies may die. The main thing is to have good drainage. It is not recommended to plant plants on heavy loamy soils. It is better to choose a light fertile soil with good aeration.

Selection and preparation of seedlings

To grow lush bushes, you need to carefully choose planting material. Planting material is sold mainly by divisions. They should be taken from a young bush and have 3-5 buds. Planting material should not be dry and show signs of damage.

It is not necessary to prepare delenki for planting. Unless you put it in a growth activator for a few hours.

Timing

Peonies are planted in early spring after the soil is fully warmed up, or in autumn before the onset of cold weather.

Plant pattern

Boarding process:

Make a depression 20-30 cm in the soil.
Put the divider in the hole and dig in with soil.
It is not recommended to deepen the root collar.
Tamp the soil near the base of the stem.

Sprinkle with plenty of warm water at the end of disembarkation.

Care

If you properly care for the bushes, then they can not be transplanted for more than 5 years.

Irrigation

Peonies do not tolerate excessive soil moisture, so if it rains for a long time and the weather is cloudy, the bushes can not be watered at all until the soil dries.

Irrigate the flowers if it's hot outside. Then you will have to moisten the soil every day. Sun-warmed water is allowed.

If cold water is used, fungal diseases may appear.

Loosening and weeding

Weeding is often necessary until the peonies have grown in early spring. When they begin to bloom, you need to pull out only the weeds and carefully weed the soil once a week before watering.

Feeding

Feed plants with fertilizer for flowering plants throughout the growing season until flowering.

Mulching

Peonies are very bushy and it is almost impossible to get close to them to pull out the weeds without accidentally breaking the flowers themselves. Therefore, immediately after planting, you need to mulch the soil. In addition, the advantage of mulch is constantly moistened soil.

Peat, sawdust, straw, agrofibre are used as mulch. The layer of mulch should not be less than 15 cm. Before laying it, the soil is loosened and weeds are removed.

How to fence off correctly

To do this, you can tie the stems to the support.

Support

Due to the height of the stems, bushes can break. To prevent this from happening, peonies need to be tied to a support. Strong metal trellises are installed next to the bushes and stems are tied to them.

Preparing for winter

Although Maxim's Festival variety survives winters well, when living in cold regions it is better to cover the plants before the onset of cold weather. The stems are cut almost to the root. Then they cover with a thick layer of spruce branches or agrofibre.

Why should not be allowed to bloom in the early years

It is undesirable to let peonies bloom in the first year after planting. All forces will be spent on the formation of inflorescences, while the root system needs nutrients to form strong and he althy.

How to cut flowers properly

Cut open buds with a sharp pruner or garden shears at an angle of 45 degrees. Places of cuts are best sprinkled with wood ash to prevent the development of infections. Cut peonies are placed in ice water.