Peony Fun Facts

Yesterday, on a day when I posted about my peony bed overhaul, I was asked to bring a bouquet of peonies to church. I thought that would be a neat trick since we’d had two days of rain and most of the peonies were already spent. “That’s fine,” Sally said. “We want to have the bouquet show all phases, if we can.” So, early yesterday morning, I went out and cut buds, new blossoms, full bloom, past bloom, and empty calyx.

We put the bouquet on the table in the middle of the worship space and then Sally asked people what they saw. Depending on where they were sitting, they a bud or a bloom, or an empty calyx in both pink and white.

I learned some things about peonies yesterday that I never had known before, so I’m going to share them here. Maybe you knew these facts already, maybe not!

• Peonies have been cultivated in China for 2000 years—for their flowers and tuberous roots.
  
• They’ve been cultivated in home gardens for 600 years.
  
• Clumps of peonies can last for 50 years.
  
• The peony is among the most requested image for tattoos (along with koi fish)!
  
• Peonies are the symbol of wealth, luck, and happiness.
  
• Ants are attracted to peony buds for the sweet nectar and are not required for plant growth.
  

People told stories about having gotten divisions of peonies from their grandparents, parents, or friends. They also talked about rescuing peonies from yards not cared for. I left feeling a little more motivated to clean up the peony bed (and plant the peonies I got from my sister last week).