How to Divide Peonies in 9 Easy Steps

Whether you grow herbaceous, tree, or hybrid peonies, you can use these steps to divide them. You’ll turn your single specimen into multiple to spread their blooms throughout the yard. Unlike most perennials, peonies live extremely long lives—some outlive their gardeners! Divide them every three to five years for an endless supply of plants.

Although you can divide your plant, it’s not necessary. This species doesn’t tend to crowd itself underground, and mature specimens live many decades without disturbance. Only divide them if you’d like to multiply your peony supply. 

With plenty of divisions, you’ll have peonies to plant in your yard, gift to friends, and put in containers for easy transporting. Here are nine easy steps if you’re looking to multiply your peonies. 

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Step 1: Choose the Best Season

Early autumn is the ideal season for dividing and transplanting peonies. They’ll have ample energy in their roots after a summer of growth, and they’ll have a few weeks before the first frost to establish themselves in their new homes. 

September is an ideal month for dividing these perennials. The best timing is six to eight weeks before your first frost date. The plants will put down sufficient roots during these weeks and prepare for winter dormancy. Transplant them late, and hard frosts may threaten them. Too early, and they may not have sufficient resources to survive in their new locations.

If your first fall frost date is steadily approaching, it’s best to wait until next year to divide your specimens. It takes patience, but the rewards are well worth the wait. Improperly timed divisions will cause you more heartache than is necessary! You want your divisions to explode with flowers and foliage in spring instead of using energy to establish themselves.

Step 2: Water Deeply the Day Before

Moisture helps the soil stay loose and easy to dig. It also keeps peony stems and roots turgid for easy handling. Water the soil the day before division, and you’ll prepare your plants for the harsh dividing and transplanting process. 

Simply leave your hose nozzle on low to trickle for thirty minutes to an hour. Ensure moisture thoroughly soaks the ground by digging some soil off the top. If you see dry dirt underneath, turn the hose back on low for another half hour. 

Some soils require more moisture than others. Clay requires lots of water for moisture to penetrate deeper than one or two inches. Sandy soils need less water, although they’ll dry out quicker. Keep the soil soaked overnight by placing cardboard or mulch over the site. Uncover it when you plant to dig; the ground should be soft, damp, and loose.

Step 3: Gather Tools and Materials

Compost isn’t necessary, but it’s extremely beneficial to the process. Where soils are poor, you can add compost during planting to boost soil fertility and structure. Compost injects the ground with organic matter, microbes, and soil-building creatures. Worms, fungi, and bacteria are just three of the dozens of fauna that thrive within compost-rich dirt. 

A sharp knife makes clean cuts on your peony, and a shovel helps you dig a hole. It may be best to use both a hand trowel and a shovel. The hand trowel allows you to dig close near peony roots without harming them like a shovel would. 

Step 4: Cut Stems to the Ground

In September, perennials enter dormancy and trees start losing their leaves. Herbaceous and hybrid peonies are no different! You can use pruners to cut their stems to within an inch of the ground without worry. They’ll already be transitioning their energy underground to their roots, you’ll simply facilitate the process. You can throw the leaves in the compost or let them stay on the ground as mulch.

Tree peonies need a different style of care. They stay alive in woody stems that persist above the ground throughout winter. Avoid chopping their stems at all costs! It’ll affect the shrub’s health and lead to fewer or no flowers next spring. It’s best to wait for them to lose their leaves, then proceed with step five below. 

Step 5: Dig Deep Around the Perimeter

The day you’re ready to divide your peonies, gather your tools, and prepare to dig! You’ll want to create a wide perimeter around the plant so you avoid damaging sensitive roots. Start digging one to two feet from the peony crown, then continue excavating soil in a circle around it. 

After you mark a circle around the crown, it’s time to uncover the deepest roots. If your hole isn’t deep enough and peony roots still latch onto the soil, dig wider for a broader gap. Then, use a hand trowel to uncover the lowest feeder roots. Older specimens may have deeper roots than you can imagine! Dig slowly and carefully to follow them to their ends. 

It’s best to hold onto as many roots as possible because more roots help them establish themselves more quickly without issues. Some feeder roots may fall off as a part of the digging process. It’s okay for a few to break, so long as the majority remain attached to the crown.

Step 6: Lift the Peony Out of the Ground

With loosened roots, the peonies are ready for lifting! Grasp them by the bottom of their rootball, and heave them out of the hole. They’ll lift easily if they’re free of soil. If the plant won’t budge, it may still have roots locked in the soil. Repeat step five, then try lifting your peony out of the hole again.

Large, mature specimens might be too heavy for one person to lift. Ask a friend for help, or try wrenching a shovel or pitchfork underneath the rootball. Using the ground as a fulcrum, lift the shovel to propel your peony up and out of its hole. 

Tree peonies will have heavy tops with woody stems attached. Carefully excavate them so as not to damage their sensitive branches. Once your specimen is free, place it where it’s easy to inspect and clean the roots.

Step 7: Inspect the Roots

Before dividing the peonies, we’ll want to look at the roots to verify they’re healthy. Live roots will look thick, turgid, and swollen. They’ll have smaller feeder roots that sprout and spread further from the crown. Dead roots shrivel, dry, and break off easily. 

Some plants may have heavy soil stuck to their roots. Grab a hose or brush to loosen the dirt from your peonies. A gentle stream should knock off the soil particles, and a brush helps speed up the process. Lightly tease the roots, running the brush on them while water flows through.

Tree peonies are sometimes grafted onto herbaceous peony rootstock. This means they’ll have woody stems growing from fleshy, tuberous roots. You’ll want to make sure they have established root systems of their own so they divide well. Their roots are lighter in color and more slender than the tuberous herbaceous ones. 

Avoid dividing tree peonies if they’re still relying on the grafted rootstock. If your specimen lacks sufficient shoots and roots, no matter what type, it’s good to give it a few more years underground before dividing it further. 

Step 8: Divide your Peony

Now comes the fun part! With your sharp knife, you’ll make incisions on the rootstock to ensure each division has ample roots and shoots, or “eyes” as growers call them. Eyes are white or light rose-colored sprouts that are next year’s flowers and leaves. They emerge upward from the crown. 

Each division should have three to five eyes each, plus ample roots. This helps your chances of seeing blooms in their first year after transplanting! Although it doesn’t happen with every division, it often does if they have three to five eyes. 

To divide your peony, take the sharp knife and make strategic cuts to create as many divisions as possible. Slice thoroughly and cleanly to avoid jagged wounds. With clean cuts, the roots will heal quickly and sprout dozens of new feeders. 

Step 9: Transplant New Divisions

It’s best to transplant your peonies soon after dividing them. With cuts and wounds, they’re prone to drying out quickly under cool autumn air. Get them safely below ground and they’ll stay cozy until next spring. 

After six to eight weeks, your transplants will have sufficient growth to survive the winter. They’ll enter dormancy until warm spring temperatures arrive. As days lengthen, you’ll see them sprout leaves, then flowers by late spring or early summer.

You may divide your transplants to get even more plants! Wait three to five years to let them reach a mature size, then repeat this process starting with step one.