Peony

Author: Yuan Tao
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2000-01-01
Features: Peony is a traditional famous flower in China. It was once ranked as the top among China's ten traditional famous flowers and enjoys a high reputation worldwide. Its dignified elegance and noble, unconventional charm not only bring people aesthetic enjoyment but also embody the profound connotations of Chinese traditional culture. As the preferred national flower, peony is well-deserved. After the liberation, China's peony industry has undergone significant recovery and development. In the past 10 to 20 years, peony workers have not only sorted out and unearthed over a hundred traditional precious varieties but also summarized and improved traditional cultivation and propagation techniques. Hundreds of excellent new varieties have been bred, and many new technologies and methods have been created and refined in production and research practices, such as soilless cultivation technology, rapid layering propagation technology, the production and maintenance of bonsai and (miniature) potted peonies, bonsai-style shaping and pruning techniques, post-flowering rejuvenation techniques, and further matured and improved flower period regulation (flower promotion and extension) techniques. In basic research, long-term field surveys and laboratory experiments have led to major breakthroughs in peony classification research, sparking a "peony fever" both domestically and internationally. A fresh understanding of the widely cultivated varieties of peony across China has emerged, with scientifically sound distinctions made between different cultivated variety groups. The "monogenetic origin" theory of peony cultivation has been overturned, while the "polygenetic origin" and "multi-origin" views have been widely accepted. The gradual refinement of the peony variety classification system has marked a leap forward in peony research. All these achievements are inseparable from the hard work and dedication of the older generation of peony researchers and producers.
The compilers of this book began engaging in peony-related research and production work in the early 1990s. Fortunately, they had the opportunity to study under Professor Wang Lianying, a renowned Chinese horticulturist and president of the Peony and Tree Peony Association. Under her meticulous guidance and support, they traveled extensively to China's main peony cultivation centers and some key wild peony distribution areas, engaging in extensive exchanges with researchers and producers in various peony regions. This allowed them to gain a relatively comprehensive understanding and recognition of China's peonies, enabling the successful completion of this booklet. The book focuses on peony resources, ecological and biological characteristics, variety classification systems, propagation and maintenance management, flower period regulation, new variety breeding, and pest and disease control. It introduces, for the first time, new methods, technologies, and achievements emerging in peony production and research in recent years, with some excellent horticultural varieties being presented to the readers for the first time. The book also provides detailed analysis and discussion on pressing issues and development prospects in China's current peony production.
This book is primarily aimed at technical, management, and marketing personnel in horticultural enterprises, farmers engaged in flower production, and peony enthusiasts. It can also serve as a reference for teachers and students in relevant majors at universities and colleges.