Scientific Name:
Paeonia lactiflora
(incl. hybrid cvs.)
Pronunciation:
pee-OH-nee-uh lack-tih-FLORE-uh
Common Name:
garden peony, Chinese peony
Family Name:
Paeoniaceae
Plant Type:
Flowering cut plant, Herbaceous perennial
Key ID Features:
Stems weak, smooth, green to red, and <70cm tall; leaves alternate, 20-30(-60)cm long x 20-40cm wide, tripinnately compound with at least the terminal leaflet having 3(-5) deep lobes, most lobes 5-15cm long x 3-7cm wide; flower buds grow 2-3cm round before opening, flowers 7-13cm wide, white-pink-purple-dark red, 8-10-many petals; fruit an agrregate of 5 hard follicles 2-3cm long x 1-1.5cm wide.
Habit:
Upright
Form:
Vase
Texture:
Coarse
Mature Height:
0.4 - 0.7m
Mature Spread:
0.6 - 1.0m
Growth Rate:
Fast
Origin:
Central / west Asia, Garden origin, S.E. Asia / Japan / China (Mongolia, eastern Siberia. Hybrid parentage may involve P. officinalis, P. peregrina, P. tenuifolia, P. daurica subsp. mlokosewitschii, or P. anomala)
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 6: (-23 to -18 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade, Sheltered
Soil/Growing Medium:
Humus rich, Well-drained
Landscape Uses:
Cut flower or foliage, Fall interest, Floristry, Group or mass planting, Mixed shrub border, Perennial border, Specimen plant, Spring interest
Additional Info:
Google. Over 8000 cultivars (most are hybrids).
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Lobed, Compound
Arrangement:
Alternate
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible, Pinnate venation
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Compound Leaf:
Odd-pinnate, Tripinnate, Biternate
Colour in Summer:
Dark-green, Lighter green undersides
Colour in Fall:
Orange, Red
Shapes:
Elliptic, Lanceolate
Apices:
Cuspidate
Bases:
Attenuate
Margins:
Entire, Incised, Undulate (wavy)
Additional Info:
Spectacular fall colour, margins rough-scabrous, scant hairs beneath
Inflorescence Type:
Flowers solitary, Floriferous
Flower Morphology:
Flowers perfect
Number Of Petals:
Variable
Corolla Shape:
Rotate/stellate
Ovary Position:
Superior
Colour (petals):
Showy, White, Purple, Pink, Red, Dark-red (Depends on cv.)
Flower Scent:
Fragrant
Flower Time at Peak:
May, Jun
Fruit Type:
Aggregate fruit, Follicle, Aborted (hybrids) or absent
Fruit Colour:
Brown (black seeds)
Fruiting Time:
Aug, Sep
Additional Info:
Showy, in clusters of 4 to 5 (= number of pistils)
Bark Morphology:
Smooth
Bark or Stem Colour:
Green, Red
Organ Modifications:
Rhizomes, Tuberous roots
Propagation:
Seed, Division - below ground parts
Maintenance:
Medium
Other:
Usually need support once the large flowers get wet
Pest Susceptibility:
Blight or needle cast, Fungal leaf spot, Mold (Deer resistant, Rabbit resistant, Drought tolerant)
Specific Pests:
Course(s):
- HORT 1193/1293
- Level 1 Apprenticeship
Location(s):
- (CGW) Community Garden West
- (PDW) PonD West
- (PPL) Pine PLanting : cv. Coral Sunset (hybrid)
- (WDH) Wark-Dumais House