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Since peonies are a perennial, you pretty much get one shot at getting your soil right. You can amend later with fertilizer, but must deal with texture, drainage, etc., first. A soil test is the best way to analyze what your soil needs. https://www.waypointanalytical.com/HomeOwners.

If you really want to skip that step, I’d at a minimum add some organic compost and fertilizer with low nitrogen.

• Peonies get planted in the fall. Technically they can also be planted in early spring, but I’ve found the plants struggle to get established.
• Choose a sunny, well-draining location. Avoid any areas where there’s standing water after a heavy rain, as the roots will rot. Good air circulation around the leaves is important as well.
• Dig a hole wide enough for the root and deep enough to cover with one-two inches of soil. If you haven’t prepared the bed previously, the soil will benefit from the addition of organic material in the planting hole—we use organic leaf compost, which also helps with drainage in our clay-rich soil. Incorporate about one cup of bonemeal or a small amount of low-nitrogen fertilizer.
• Set the root so the eyes face upward on top of a mound of soil in the hole, placing the top of the roots just one to two inches below the soil surface. Don’t plant too deep, or it’s possible you’ll get leaves but no flowers! (In Southern states, choose early-blooming varieties; plant them about one inch deep, and provide some shade. In Northern states, you can plant a bit deeper.)
• Then backfill the hole, taking care the soil doesn’t settle and bury the top of the root deeper than two inches. Tamp the soil gently.
• When planting a container-grown peony, cover it no deeper than it grew in the pot.
• If you’re planting many roots, try to space them about 3’ apart. Make sure you get plenty of airflow, so moisture doesn’t sit on the leaves.
• Water thoroughly at the time of planting.