I have noticed that my peony buds seem to produce a slightly sticky substance and that ants are attracted to it. This happened last year but it didn't affect the flowering at all. I was worried at the time but perhaps it is normal. Good luck with yours.
Update to show they finally flowered. I think they would have flowered in their own time but I may have managed to hasten them along - or not! Not sure. I read a florists website where she described forcing open peony buds for display. She described the sticky sap which the buds produce and said she sprayed the buds with warm water to loosen the tight outer petals. She was talking about cut flowers so I thought I might as well try it outdoors. I sprayed them three mornings in a row. Even while I was spraying they outer petals loosened away. And hey presto, they all began to burst open. But there's no certainty that that they might have opened just because they were ready to. I don't know. And they were beautiful - before a thunderstorm a few days later. I was delighted to see how beautiful they are - although I have no idea which peony they are.
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I have noticed that my peony buds seem to produce a slightly sticky substance and that ants are attracted to it. This happened last year but it didn't affect the flowering at all. I was worried at the time but perhaps it is normal. Good luck with yours.
Update to show they finally flowered. I think they would have flowered in their own time but I may have managed to hasten them along - or not! Not sure. I read a florists website where she described forcing open peony buds for display. She described the sticky sap which the buds produce and said she sprayed the buds with warm water to loosen the tight outer petals. She was talking about cut flowers so I thought I might as well try it outdoors. I sprayed them three mornings in a row. Even while I was spraying they outer petals loosened away. And hey presto, they all began to burst open. But there's no certainty that that they might have opened just because they were ready to. I don't know. And they were beautiful - before a thunderstorm a few days later. I was delighted to see how beautiful they are - although I have no idea which peony they are.
Green shield stamps - would need a lot of them now to get buried