How to Care for an Athena Plant
The Athena plant (Paeonia lactiflora) is a peony hybrid, introduced in 1949. One of the earliest-blooming varieties, Athena bears pink flowers that fade to a lighter, almost white, pink with a bright pink center. Athena is an herbaceous peony, an erect bush that produces single blooms. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Grow the Athena plant in a sunny spot if you live in a cooler region of the country but provide it with shade in warmer regions. The planting location should also be protected from high winds, as these may snap the flowers off.
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Keep the soil moist at all times.
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Spread 2 inches of mulch on the soil around the Athena plant to keep the soil moist and cool. Rake it back and dispose of it in the fall and lay down a new layer in the spring, after fertilizing.
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Fertilize the Athena plant in the spring when it reaches 3 inches tall. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of 5-10-5 on the soil and water to soak the fertilizer into the soil.
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Produce larger flowers by removing all the side buds and allowing the terminal bud, the one at the tip of the stem, to remain.
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Remove dead flowers as soon as they fade by cutting them off the stem just below the flower head.
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Cut the Athena to 3 inches above the soil after the first hard frost. Unlike other bulbous plants that are overwintered in the soil, do not cover the plant with mulch.
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