What are the characteristics of the peony flower? A complete guide in one article

Alternative names for the peony flower

Shugu, Lujiu, Bairong, Mud peony, Baiyujin, Luoyang flower, wealth flower .

Growth habits of the peony flower

It likes a warm, cool, dry, and sunny environment. It likes sunlight, can also tolerate partial shade, tolerates weak alkalinity, fears waterlogging, and fears direct scorching sun. It is suitable for growing in loose, fertile neutral soil. Soil that is too heavy and sticky easily leads to poor growth.

The suitable temperature for growth is 15~25°C, and above 25°C it enters a dormant state. Between 17~20°C, it blooms most gorgeously. The peony flower is tolerant of low temperatures and can overwinter safely even at -30°C. However, in cold northern regions, attention should be paid to keeping warm in winter to avoid frost damage.

The high-temperature and high-humidity environment of the south is unfavorable to the growth of peonies, so in the south, specific conditions are needed for care in order to see the wondrously beautiful peony flowers.

Morphological characteristics of the peony flower

The peony flower is a perennial deciduous small shrub that grows slowly and has a small plant type, with plant height mostly between 0.5 and 2 m; the roots are fleshy, thick and long, with a woody center, generally 0.5 to 0.8 m in length, and in very few cases the roots can reach 2 m in length; the color of the root bark and root flesh varies by variety; the branches and trunks of the peony flower are upright and brittle, round, and form a shrub shape from several branches clustered at the rhizome. Current-year branches are smooth, herbaceous, yellow-brown, and often split and peel off; the leaves are alternate, and the leaf blades are usually bipinnately trifoliolate compound leaves. The upper part of the peony flower branch often has simple leaves. The leaflets have shapes such as lanceolate, ovate, and elliptic. The terminal leaflet is often 2 to 3-lobed. The upper surface of the leaf is dark green or yellow-green, and the lower surface is gray-green, smooth or hairy; the total petiole of the peony flower is 8 to 20 cm long, with a groove on the surface; the flowers are solitary at the top of the current-year branch, bisexual, large and brilliantly colored, beautiful and varied in form, with a flower diameter of 10 to 30 cm; the flower colors include ten major colors: white, yellow, pink, red, purplish red, purple, dark purple (black), snow blue (pinkish blue), green, and variegated.

Types of peony flowers

There are many classification methods for peony flowers. By plant type, they can be divided into upright type, spreading type, and semi-spreading type; by bud type, they can be divided into round bud type, narrow bud type, hawk-beak type, and exposed-beak type; by branching habit, they can be divided into single-branch type and clustered-branch type; by flower color, they can be divided into white, yellow, pink, red, purple, dark purple (black), snow blue (pinkish blue), green, and variegated; by flowering period, they can be divided into early-flowering type, mid-flowering type, late-flowering type, and autumn-winter type (some varieties have the habit of blooming twice; after blooming in spring, they can naturally bloom again in autumn and winter, which is called the autumn-winter type); by flower type, they can be divided into four levels: series, class, group, and type. The four series are the peony series, the rockii peony series, the yellow peony series, and the purple peony series; the two classes are the single-flower class and the terrace-flower class; the two groups are the thousand-layer group and the tower group; below the group, they are divided into several types according to flower shape, such as single-petal type, lotus type, gui-supporting type, crown type, and so on.

After the peony flower changed from wild to cultivated, due to changes in environmental conditions and continuous artificial selection and cultivation, in addition to variations in flower color, flower type, and early or late flowering period, variations also occurred in plant morphology, root length and thickness, and leaf color and shape.

The flower language of the peony flower

The peony flower is the king of a hundred flowers, with meanings of completeness, wealth, and elegant nobility. The peony flower also symbolizes expectation, faint love, dedicated effort, and a noble and trustworthy person.