Melinda Warmund
Published: May 29, 2018
The “king of all flowers,” peonies, are currently giving Missouri a breathtaking display of blossom color. However, ants also appear as the peony plants begin to bloom. Ants on buds and blossoms can be a pain, but they don’t hurt anything (Figure 1). Ants leave peony flowers after bloom is through and go on to seek out another food source.
It is untrue that ants are necessary for peonies to bloom. Peonies and ants have a mutualistic relationship in which both of their activities are beneficial to the other species of organisms. Ants eat the nectar from peony blooms, and in return, the ants defend the flowers from other insects that consume flowers.
It is possible to find extrafloral nectaries outside of peony flower buds. These plant organs exude nectar, which serves as an ant food supply since it contains sugars (sucrose, glucose, and fructose), amino acids, lipids, and other organic substances. A scout ant leaves a pheromone or odor trail on her journey back to her colony after finding nectar on a peony. The scout informs other ants at the nest of the food supply. The recruited ants then return to the nectar-filled peony blossoms by following the olfactory trail.
The ants guard their food supply from other insects that come to dine on the flower buds while they are consuming the nectar. The odor trail is reinforced when each ant consumes peony nectar, continuing until all of the food has been consumed. This kind of insect behavior is an effective way for them to make use of a transient food source.
An insecticide need not be used because the presence of ants on the floral tissues of peonies is only transient. Holding the peonies upside down by the stem immediately below the flower, shake the ants off outside or gently rinse them off before arranging them when cutting peonies at full bloom for indoor use. Cut plant stems while flower buds are in the “marshmallow stage” to assure ant eradication, and wash any ants off with water before bringing them inside (Figure 2). Flower buds are currently closed but displaying some color. Squeezing flower buds between the forefinger and thumb will also feel velvety. When marshmallow-stage buds are taken indoors, full bloom usually happens within 8 to 48 hours of putting the stems in water. Cut stems containing flower buds can also be refrigerated for subsequent bloom production.
Thrips, a common insect that feeds on peony blooms, are not like ants. These tiny (1 to 2 mm long), thin insects use their mouthparts to penetrate flower petals and draw liquids from the plant tissues, resulting in flowers that are discolored or have blemishes. Heavy infestations that obliterate peony flowers are quite uncommon. See the most recent IPM article, “Plant Peonies in September,” for more details on cultivating peonies.
Do ants prevent peonies from growing?
Do ants actually aid in the blooming of peonies? Ants “tickle the buds to assist the flowers open,” according to myth about gardens. There is a beneficial relationship between peonies and ants, but it’s not what you may imagine. The tale of peony and ants is presented here, along with advice on how to bring peonies indoors without attracting ants.
We celebrate the breathtakingly gorgeous peony blossoms in the late spring. But those of us who have peonies in our gardens might also note the ants’ appearance, particularly in or near the base of the flower or on unopened buds.
Are Ants Harmful to Peonies?
Let’s answer this initial query first. No. Without a doubt. Avoid sweeping those ants under the rug or, even worse, using insecticide!
Ants are not only NOT dangerous, but they are also a prime illustration of biological mutualism. The ants guard the peony from aphids, thrips, and other harmful insect pests while the peonies supply nectar (food) for the ants.
Do Peonies Need Ants to Bloom?
The persistent misconception is that ants are necessary for peonies’ buds to open. You may have heard that for peonies to blossom, ants must “tickle the buds” or “lick the sugar.”
As with most mythology, this claim may have once had a glimmer of reality, but we haven’t yet seen proof of it. (We also appreciate that this legend keeps ants and peonies alive while letting nature run its course.)
Why Ants Are Attracted to Peonies
Simply put, the sugary drops (nectar) that are present at the base of the green sepals that encircle a peony bud are what attract ants. Due to the presence of amino acids, lipids, and other organic substances in addition to sugars, this is an excellent food source for ants.
The peonies ARE NOT being eaten by the ants. A scout ant leaves a pheromone or odor trail on her journey back to her colony after finding nectar on a peony. The scout informs other ants at the nest of the food supply. The recruited ants then return to the nectar-filled peony blossoms by following the olfactory trail.
In return, the ants offer some defense for the plant! The ants attack other bud-eating pests while they are consuming the nectar by stinging, biting, or acid-spraying them before tossing them off the plant in order to preserve their food source.
The ants are also transient. The ants will leave the peony flower once it has bloomed and move on to look for other food sources.
Again, even if there are ants present (for example, if you live on a rooftop), the peony blossoms would still open.
How to Get Rid of Ants on Peonies Before Bringing Indoors
While we appreciate our garden’s pink, crimson, and traditional white peonies, we also like bringing their beauty and smell inside. But how can we prevent bringing ants inside as well?
There are several approaches:
- When the dew is still thick and most of the ants are not yet present, cut the peony early in the morning. Turn the peonies upside down while holding them by the stem just below the flower (to prevent their heads from breaking off). Give the stems directly above the flowers a few solid taps. This aids in removing insects and spiders. Apply the correct amount of force for the stem.
- Watch the ants emerge after dipping each peony bloom in a large dish of chilly water outside. They won’t be able to crawl out if the dish is overfilled. To avoid picking up more ants, gently shake/tap the water off the flower and place the stem in a prepared vase. The water in the dish can then be returned to nature, along with the ants.
Cutting the peony flowers before the buds fully open is yet another technique used by expert growers. To get the peony’s buds to open indoors, you must clip it while they are at the “marshmallow stage” (see photo above).
How can you grow peony devoid of ants?
Peonies are well known for luring ants, which crawl all over the flowers and feast on the sticky sugars they release. Whether they are outside or on someone’s dining room table, the ants leave once the blossom has fully opened and the sucrose has been digested. People who have had ants march across their dinner table and depart their centerpiece frequently have a negative opinion of peonies as cut flowers.
However, there is a straightforward fix for the ant issue, and every professional peony grower uses it: Before the petals open, cut the peonies when they are in bud. Shake or wipe off any ants that may be present on the buds. The peony should then be placed in water to begin blooming indoors.
The only tricky part is figuring out when the bud is mature enough to be cut open from the inside. The bud is at its softest and most colorful when it is at this stage. When clipped, the bud on a giant double peony like Sarah Bernhardt can measure around 1.5 inches in diameter; two days later, it will have grown to its full size.
Cut peonies can be stored in the refrigerator for a few weeks if they are at the marshmallow stage. The peony can be stored in the refrigerator’s back section after being gently wrapped in plastic with the clipped stem ends showing. (Warning: Adding apples, cantaloupes, or other ethylene-producing fruits will reduce the flowers’ vase life.) The flowers can be burrito-style wrapped in newspaper and put in an opaque plastic container in a fridge for the commercial grower. They will hold at 35 for a month or longer. Cut an inch off the stem when you are ready to use it, and then immerse it in warm, deep water. The length of time it takes for the flower to fully open can range from eight to 48 hours, depending on how tightly closed the bud was when it was cut.
Your peony won’t have ants if you handle them this way. Additionally, they’ll be the most exquisite, lavish, and aromatic cut flowers imaginable.
Pink “Sarah Bernhardt” peonies are complemented in the image above by fuschia Dianthus “Purple Bouquet” and deep purple Campanula glomerata. On Friday morning, the peonies were placed in water after being cut in bud and kept in the cooler for a week. Sunday morning was when this picture was taken.
Do peony in general draw ants?
Peonies may become lanky and need staking to support their blooms if planted in partial shade.
The peony is a favorite flower among gardeners in the South. These sought-after beauties may even be cultivated in backyards, and the vivid, billowy flowers steal the show in cut bouquets. In spring, peonies that are in bloom are welcomed into garden beds, but the swarms of ants that swarm to the flowers are not. Wait a moment before using the pesticide; it’s not a bad idea. Peonies are not harmed by ants; in fact, the creatures aid in their defense. According to the University of Missouri, it is a fallacy that ants help peonies blossom, but the two actually have a positive association.
A sweet, sugary nectar that is secreted by peony blossoms draws ants. An army of ants immediately locates the food source after one ant emits a pheromone to the colony when she discovers a nectar-rich bloom. How is this beneficial to peonies? The ants chase off other insects trying to eat on the peonies in order to defend their prized food source. There is no need to apply insecticide to get rid of the ants because once the nectar is gone, they will depart the flower in search of other sources of sustenance.
Snip just-opening peonies for cut flower bouquets (they will have a longer lifespan in a vase). Make sure no ants are bringing the blossoms inside with them. To get rid of any ants, submerge the chopped peony heads in a bucket of water. Plant peonies inside in the fall for spring blooms. Due to their need for colder winters and the fact that they frequently take two to three years to produce their distinctive show-stopping blooms, these flowers can be challenging to grow in Southern backyards. But good news for you: It is simple to find peonies at nearby grocery stores and flower shops for usage in bouquets and cut arrangements.
Do ants aid with peony blooming?
Ants enjoy peonies for the same reason that we do—they are delightful. You’ll observe sweet nectar droplets surrounding the bloom’s green exterior as the flower buds develop (called the sepal). Ants adore sugar, as we all are aware. It makes sense that they would be drawn to this sticky honey.
This frequent occurrence gave rise to the misconception that ants are necessary for peonies to blossom.
According to the hypothesis, in order for the buds to open, the sticky substance must be removed by the ants. However, this myth is wholly wrong. Peonies will bloom with or without a few ants’ assistance (it makes for a wholesome story though).
Why failed to blossom my peonies?
In Midwest landscapes, peonies are a mainstay. They produce consistently well in the garden and are simple to grow. However, those of us in extension are frequently swamped with calls, emails, etc. when they do not blossom well. Failure to bloom could be caused by a number of factors.
Buds Don’t Appear
The following are some potential reasons for the absence of buds, which is typically the case:
1. Too much shade around the plants. To bloom successfully, peonies require a minimum of 4-6 hours of direct sunlight.
2. Recently transplanted or divided. If transplanted or divided in the late summer, peonies rarely, if ever, bloom well the following spring. Sometimes it takes plants 2 to 3 years to reestablish themselves sufficiently in their new location to blossom successfully.
3. inserted roots too deeply. Peony buds should be positioned during planting 1 to 2 inches below the soil’s surface. Nobody can explain how they can tell if something is 2 inches or 4 inches, but they can! A peony may have lovely foliage but few (if any) flowers when it is planted too deeply.
4. Excessive fertilization. No matter the location, peonies that receive too much nitrogen rarely flower effectively. Nitrogen favors foliar growth over floral growth.
5. Too big of clumps? According to some sources, huge, aged clumps might not bloom effectively. Nevertheless, I have observed a number of sizable plants in the Midwest that appear to bloom nicely every year. A clump wouldn’t stop blooming until it was several decades old, in my opinion. In order to rejuvenate a clump that is too enormous or perhaps too old, it is simple to divide the plant in the late summer.
Plants are too young, point six. If a cluster can be too old, then there is a chance that it can also be too young. Despite the fact that most peony sold nowadays are not normally produced from seeds, some dedicated gardeners do succeed in doing so. When planted from seeds, plants mature and eventually flower in roughly 4 to 5 years.
7. Cutting down of foliage too soon. If the plant’s foliage is removed in July or August, the plant will become weaker and produce fewer flowers.
Buds Appear, But Don’t Open
Other potential reasons of buds that emerge but do not open include:
1. An abrupt freeze. The flower buds may be harmed or destroyed by a strong freeze in May (like the one we experienced last year). Fortunately, it doesn’t occur frequently.
2. Additional severe weather situations. Very dry summer weather may damage plants and cause them to produce fewer blossoms the next season.
3. Fungal ailments Rarely, especially in cool and wet conditions, the flower buds are attacked by botrytis blight or other fungi. The best prevention methods are removing the damaged leaves at the conclusion of the growing season and the dead buds in late spring.
4. Pest insects. On rare circumstances, flower buds may be harmed and distorted by thrips or other insect pests, which would reduce flowering. Since the harm is frequently done early in the season, insecticides are typically ineffective.
5. Underweight. In most Iowan soils, this is another another rarity. Poorly growing (weak, spindly, yellowish, or “off-color”) plants lack the strength necessary to bloom (but may set buds). It would be advantageous to transplant into a more advantageous area and apply mild fertilizer after establishment.
I’m done now. The most frequent causes of peony not blooming are cultural (planting in too much shade and planting too deeply). Always keep in mind that peonies are resilient and frequently endure for many years in “not so perfect” settings. However, beware if they don’t bloom one year—everyone will notice!