I planted 3 peonies 3 years ago and they are small and sad looking every year. They do not bloom. They are planted in full sun in zone 5a (Canada) or zone 6 (US). Planted near calendula, oregano, milk weed. The soil could be richer but isn't awful. What's wrong with them and how can I fix it?

klknibb! It could be just bad roots. I have a couple bad peonies that do not develop at all. I still keep them in a flower bed hoping that they will start growing. I think at one point I will just throw them away. They were bought in cheap places and I have enough other good peonies that develop and get better every year. Try to give them some more space, peonies do not like root competition, I wold remove all other vegetation around peonies, at least 16" around the center of a peony. Good luck!

90% chance you have some sort of root problem. Either your soil gets waterlogged easily or you need to dig up those peonies and get a closer look at the roots.
I've seen (mercifully not in my garden) very similar issues caused by root nematodes on herbaceous peonies and I hope it's not what you have.

Oh oh, I worry some of my expensive peonies might be in this category. Thank goodness, I discovered it yesterday and my husband reduced water accordingly.
My question is if there's problem with the root, then why is the plant not dead, why it has leaves even.

Is it planted too deep? I feel like even sad peonies have some blossoms. They might not thrive, but you'll see something at some point. If it were me, I would dig it up, soak it in a 5% bleach solution and replant in amended soil if you want to use the same location. Eyes 1 inch below soil. Water in.

Alternatively, you can dig up and toss if you feel it is hopeless.

I think that they are just a bit too crowded by competing plants - including one another. The planting halo for peonies should be 2' feet. They don't get enough sunlight early enough so get some mold going, and then have a hard time advancing/improving as a result. Peonies are hard to kill, but pretty easy to stall.

Should you spread them out, try building a little mound maybe with a touch of sand for at least one of them. The idea here is to improve drainage a bit to see if that is the direction you need to go.

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