Peonies and ants

When I opened my door this morning to NOT find Dusty there, I was oddly disappointed. Still, he was small, and it IS a long way to cross the street, so who knows, he may show up tomorrow :)

Last year I noticed for the first time that our peonies were covered in ants, as soon as they started budding. The ants were not in my way so I just let them do whatever they wanted to do. When I saw it happen again a few days ago, I wondered why they love peonies so much.
Thank you, internet:
Apparently, the buds secrete some sap that the ants love as much as I love chocolate. There's still a persistent rumour out there that says ants are necessary for peony flowers to open, but they're not. I've seen people claim that the bud scales are really tight and that the ants trampling all over them loosens them up.

Okaaaaay.


It looks freaky though, every single bud covered in ants. And it was very windy while I was taking shots, so I was certain some of them would be blown into me. Brrr.