Is my Paul M. Wild diseased? It is a second year plant that bloomed last year, but this year the stalks came up curled, deformed, and stunted. The deformed stems stopped growing. What do I do with it now? Dig and trash?

A couple of rows away there's a second young peony with one small similarly deformed stem, too.

I don't think the above is disease. It looks more like crown/root damage either from rotting or animal. Were the roots disturbed somehow? Did your area get a lot of rain and cloudy days? Some peony cultivars are more susceptible to rotting prolonged wetness.

Could be a weed killer also.

Could also be frost damage. I would remove that foliage and discard in the trash. Sterilize your clippers between plants. Wait and see next year.

Karen - Thanks for the reply. I don't believe anything happened to the crown or root in the last year. It is in a row of other peonies. A few feet away on the walkway there is a puddle that forms in the rain, but its closer to other plants that are not affected.

Gary - Thanks.

LG - It could be frost damage. I don't remember what the growth looked like the last time it froze.

Okay, well I clipped it off and tossed it. Will see what happens next year.