Sorry, don't know why the photo didn't attach

Maifleur, that makes me feel a little better about it, thank you! It's still a little unsettling that it's affected more and more branches each year..

Hi Darren, you are right to be concerned. I would be. I think that it is definitely a fungal disease although I don't know which one. I hope that your peony is salvageable but you also don't want this to spread to your other plants. Treat it with a fungicide - repeatedly. Remove all of the diseased parts of the plant and do not put them in the compost. Bag the diseased plant material and put it out in the trash. If this is one of the fungal diseases that live in the soil, you may have no choice but to lose the plant in order to save your others. Also, clean your tools with bleach or alcohol between plants so you don't spread the fungus.

The spots are normal, not a fungus.

It is probably either botrytis or phyphthora blight. They usually also have spots on the leaves, not just the stem. I've read that you should apply a fungacide every 14 days as soon as the buds start to emerge through mid-June. Good luck!

Mailfleur knows her stuff Darren. I have been in awe of her peonies for a very long time.

Again, to confirm both mailfleur and floral's comments, the spots are not any kind of disease or pathogen but just the markings common to many peony stems. Even botanical lithographs show these markings on peony stems and leaf petioles!

Thank you everyone for all the input!

I have yet to see any spots on the leaves, so I think I may be in the clear as far as infection goes, but I will keep an eye out and have some fungicide on hand just in case! The blooms were lovely this year on two of the trees, the third is still recovering from transplanting it two years back. The purple stands almost 6 feet tall, while the yellow is around 4 feet tall and has a lovely fragrance!

Wow to that purple!