I ventured into growing peony seedlings in 2022 and have had some success and failures. Followed both the indoor and outdoor method from APS and I have a few questions that I'm hoping those with more experience can answer now that I'm starting my 3rd year of growing from APS seed exchange.

I prefer the indoor method because I think I learn better by observation. Many of the seeds will sprout during the first warm period even though the APS guide says they need a chill period to sprout. What should I do when these first roots appear before I've had a chance to chill them? Should I wait until I see leaflets before planting?

I'm also wondering about timing of the warm and cool period. I've been following the guide of 3 months warm then 3 months cold, which means it's sometimes hard to time when to move the seedling outdoors. Last year I had some seedlings sprouting roots in September after a warm/cold cycle. I grew them in pots indoors for three months, then moved the pots outside at the end of December to get another chill period. Doing a little digging this spring it looks like many of the seeds have perished and I'm wondering what I should have done differently.

Good news is 4/5 of my year two seedlings from "Hot Gates" are all starting to sprout. One looks to have died and I'm not sure if that's typical or if I should have done something different culturally.

Any advice is appreciated!

I am all for keeping it simple so I would recommend planting them outside as soon as you receive them/harvest them, and mark the location. The rest is up to Mother Nature and she seldom goes wrong Of course we don't know where you garden, or even what time of the year you receive the seeds

Kathryn, I'm so glad you have taken on this fun and interesting activity and I'm wishing you every success in the future.

It is just fine if your seed produced a root during the warm incubation period; the end of the warm cycle signals plants to do just that. According to Don Smith the peak activity for root growth at this step occurs at week 11, and after week 13 he certainly has everything in the fridge. Proper moisture levels are key during this period.

In my experience the ideal schedule looks like this in my climate:
Seeds in baggies with warmth and moisture in September - October.
Baggies in fridge in December - January.
Seeds potted up and under grow lights in March - April.

At the last step they are set up to go outdoors while being somewhat in sync with the weather outdoors.

Having seeds that sprout roots in September after completing the first part of the temperature cycling would not work for me in my climate and would result in seedlings that are growing too early in the year. I don't like to have them under the lights that long or they get leggy and don't do well when transitioning to the outdoors.

As Val mentions, it's very difficult to imitate exactly what is going on outdoors in our homes, so don't feel too bad if you have failures. I've always had the best success my simply pressing the seed in the ground, but hopefully the schedule I've mention above helps you out.

Great discussion! How deep do you push the seeds into the ground? I am asking because of my TP seeds. Not sure if this is the same as for herbaceous peonies.

Jasmin - I find peony seedlings all over the place if I have failed to remove the pods So you know that they will germinate even when just sitting on the ground So it's safe to say an inch down will be a good place to start - at least in Zone 4b or above.

Thank you, Val

I found two little seedlings in the impossible places last year. One of them was growing from the middle of the small rose in a pot. The little root was still attached to the seed, but it had a little leaf too.

The other seedling was growing from the middle of the native Holly; totally dry place, close to the foundation. When I pulled it out, I realize that it already had its tap root, which means that it had to be in its second or even third year. I planted both seedlings in a big pot last year. They both look very happy today

Last year, I also found a little plant just below the Snow Lotus (TP). I wanted to plant in a pot, but when I took it out, I realized that it wasn't a seedling because it had a thick horizontal root. I was more of sucker, which surprised me. I planted it, but it did not survive last fall However, a couple of days ago, I noticed another little plant growing exactly at the same spot close to the Snow Lotus. I will not touch this one anymore

The best surprise of this spring was when I realized that a little TP, which was growing beside my beloved Guardian of the Monastery showed up a couple of days ago. The Guardian did not properly leaved out last year, and I thought it was dying. However, this little TP, for which I thought it was a seedling, was growing very close to the old Guardian. Now I must not try to move it because it might not be a seedling, but it might be somehow connected with the roots of the old Guardian. It is tiny. It would really make me happy to see this little guy take off

I should have more seedling this year, because I let lots of the seeds fell on the ground

Not wishing to dampen your spirits Jasmin, before you get excited about seedlings or new growth close to your TP's, I would recommend you wait till they leaf out to confirm that it is not the Mother plant growing, as some TP's are grafted
It has been my experience that the graft roots have very different foliage so will be easy to spot. Hopefully that is not the case but just incase it is, I would remove the growing tip so it doesn't waste energy to the Mother graft but keep enough so you will recognize the plant to remove when you dig it up in the fall - usually an easy job.

Val, I am positive these are TPs. You could tell the difference the moment you see their leaves. Herbaceous peonies have shiny leaves. These are mat. In addition, these little guys are very early. My herbaceous peonies have not start emerging yet. I also know that Snow Lotus came on its own roots

but I wouldn't classify suffruticosa and lactiflora foliage along such distinct lines - I prefer to go by shape.

Of course, after a couple of days, and a good rain, it becomes clear

Jasmin said: Of course, after a couple of days, and a good rain, it becomes clear

Well, Jasmin - I think we've all had a lot of rain over the last month - how are your tree peony seedlings doing?