Jim, Herbaceous peonies are well known to be able to produce random eyes on the roots if they are removed from the mother crown. Some grow better than other but all have the potential. Also, the girdling of the herbaceous stock does not happen in a single growing season. It will not start to reduce the "juice" until maybe the 3rd or 4th season. By this time, the tree peony will have produced roots of it's own. The herbaceous root is never completely severed and does still provide food and nutrients to the TP until one day it is dug up and permanently cut off. I can attest to the fact that herbaceous roots can produce side shoots and my TP graft was not able to grow as a result. Two years in a row I have dug up one 'Shimanishiki' plant and removed several sections of the herbaceous root. They had produced randon eyes that grow even though they are 6" below the soil. Luckily, the TP has begun to prouce it's own roots and if I get another growth next year, the herbaceous root is coming off! I feel sorry for this one plant being continuously dug up each year. ===== John Ingram in L.A., CA. http://www.floralarchitecture.com/ check it out Floralartistry2000@yahoo.com 310.709.1613 (cell, west coast time, please call accordingly. Thank you)