Paeonia x suffruticosa Ling Hua Zhan Lu - Tree peony

Paeonia × suffruticosa 'Ling Hua Zhan Lu', whose name means Flower in Dew, is a Chinese moutan peony, or tree peony with woody stems. This late-flowering, floriferous variety bears large double flowers in pinkish-purple with bluish highlights. In the garden, place it in a prominent spot near a path or terrace to enjoy its magnificent, albeit rather brief, spring flowering.

This peony belongs to the Paeoniaceae family. It is related to Chinese tree peonies, cultivated for centuries under the name mudan, which in horticultural usage is translated as moutan peony, tree peony or shrub peony. Paeonia × suffruticosa is a shrubby hybrid linked to Paeonia jishanensis × Paeonia rockii. It originates from temperate China, notably Henan.

'Ling Hua Zhan Lu' is part of the Chinese central plains cultivars, also known as the Zhongyuan group. This variety was obtained in Heze, Shandong, in 1969. Its Chinese name means a flower covered in dew. It is a woody and deciduous plant: its branches persist in winter, while the leaves fall in autumn and regrow in spring. It forms a bush that is initially upright, becoming more spreading with age. It reaches 1.20 to 1.50m in height with a similar spread. Its growth is slow during the first few years. Once well established, this variety flowers abundantly. Its flowering is late for a moutan peony, occurring between May and June depending on the climate. The flowers are large, double, 17 to 20 cm wide on a well-established mature specimen. The outer petals are broad, supple, and a bluish pink. Their tips are pale to light pink as the flower opens. The centre is darker, in purplish-pink tones and sometimes burgundy at the base of the petals. A few yellow stamens may be visible in less double flowers. The fragrance is delicate. The foliage consists of large, light green leaves, divided into lobed leaflets, with clearly visible veins on the young shoots. In autumn, the leaves turn yellow before falling. The brown-grey, short and woody branches do not die back like those of a herbaceous peony. The fruits, when they form, contain large, dark seeds. These take a long time to germinate and do not faithfully reproduce the cultivar.

Its Chinese name, 菱花湛露, is read as Ling Hua Zhan Lu. The English translation “Blossom Bathed in Dew” evokes a water chestnut flower bathed in dew; this image poetically suggests the delicate colour of the petals.

Plant this tree peony in the garden in deep, rich, well-drained soil, preferably as a specimen plant. In a large border, you can pair it with the white tree peony 'Xue Ta', old rose 'Tuscany Superb' with a very dark crimson red turning to purple, and Philadelphus 'Manteau d’Hermine', a low, supple mock orange, covered in May-June with highly fragrant creamy-white flowers.