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What do I do with these seed pods (if that's what they are)?

6 years ago

Some of my peonies have bloomed and all I have left is what is pictured. Do I cut them off of leave them. I don't want to do anything that will reduce next year's flowering. As you can tell, I'm a "Newbie"!

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Comments (4)

lizbest1
6 years ago
Depending on the variety of peony you have it could have viable seed inside. If you want to try to grow peonies from seed just be aware that it is a very long process, easily 5 years from planting to first bloom, and that the seedling might not (probably won't!) look anything like the parent. I've had no success in starting them inside, someone else will have to post a method for that if you're interested, but if you want to plant them outside you'll need to wait for the seed pod to change colors and split. This normally happens mid-late summer for me. The seed inside will look like small dried peas, can be any shade from a dark tan to black. My method is to cut the bottom from a 2-3 gallon plastic plot and plant it down into a shady spot in my garden. Fill it with garden soil and then just push your peony seed down into it, maybe an inch at deepest. The only purpose for the pot is to show exactly where the seeds are planted as you won't see any growth above ground until the following spring at the earliest.

If you don't like the way the seed pods look and aren't interested in investing 5+ years into a new plant you can deadhead the seed pods whenever you like, makes the plant look better. Or you can just leave them there and let nature take its (eventual) course, I have plenty of baby volunteer plants....
msgenie51642 thanked lizbest1
msgenie51642
Original Author
6 years ago
Thank you for your help! I will just cut them off as I'm old and who knows if I will be here in 5 years! Your answer is of great help to me because I didn't want to hurt the plant in any way. So if I can just cut them off, I'll be happy.
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Ok so as for now, I think I will leave the pods on the plumeria and loosely wrap some cheesecloth around them and see what happens. I was wondering if anyone has any advice as to help with my other questions. Why the oddly shaped leaves, which you can see one in my picture above. Not every leaf, but more like 3-5 per plant. I read some info regarding leaf stress disorder, which if that is what mine is, it is a very mild case compared to the pictures I saw. Also when my tree blooms, it only gets four blooms at the most, which are replaced sparingly by a couple more once they are spent. And the flowers only last like two days before shriveling up. I realize I need to fertilize, which I don't. But I also read on this forum that there is a debate with success on both sides regarding repotting in the same pot after a root trim, and potting up. I have kept my plumerias in clay pots, which are now crumbling, and I am not sure what to do here. I live in a hot desert where the temps get up into the 120s and stay there. The black florist pots I have seen recommended on here I worry would get way too hot in the sun and cook my roots. Plus I tend to overwater during the summer months, which some argue is hard to do where I live. In addition, my plumerias are inside, and the one in the crumbling clay pot looks like it isn't going to go dormant. It has almost an inch of shiny new growth at the branch tips just from this past month and a half it has been inside. Would it be ok to repot now and then wait a couple weeks before fertilizing, or should I just wait for spring? Thanks all! Cassandra
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Thank you so much for your reply! I really appreciate all of the information. I didn't even think to pollinate all of them - I just did 3 because the videos I watched had only pollinated one or two and I thought that would be enough. Unfortunately, my all of my paternal plant's blooms have fallen off (too many suckers, a lot of the blooms were on their way out when I had bought them, but the plant itself looks very healthy. It's growing rapidly - I can't believe it. It's a good time to repot though, since it's not like I have to sacrifice my pretty little flowers). By the way, about how long does it take for new flowers to bloom after repotting? Once both plants are ready, I'll try again. I'm so excited! That's a great idea as well! I had just tied strings around the ones I pollinated. I had seen a few people take off the petals of their pollinated ones, but I wasn't sure how much of a difference it'd make. And even if that is just a superstition, I wouldn't be surprised if it were true. It may be the mother plant's fault - but I also don't know if I pollinated too late? The flowers had been quite open by the time I pollinated, and the paternal plant's pollen was also a bit old (though, I read older pollen is actually considered better in some cases). Thank you for the suggestion, I'll give it a go! Would getting a humidifier do the same job, or would it not help as much since all of the humidity wouldn't be concentrated in one little space? (I think all the plants could use a little more humidity) Will do :) Wow, your seedlings look great! The leaves are very interesting - good luck with them!
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lizbest1
6 years ago
Cutting the pods off won't hurt it at all, just leave as much foliage as possible until it dies down on its own in the fall.
msgenie51642 thanked lizbest1
maifleur01
6 years ago
Best way to keep the look of the plants is to follow the stem down to just above the first leaf. About 1-2 inches above that cut the stem that flowered off. The cut will heal. I have seen people remove the whole stem at ground level leaving a strange looking clump or only remove the seedpod leaving the stem waving in the air.
msgenie51642 thanked maifleur01

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