Paeonia 2009

[Regelian]

Simon,

certainly looks like P. peregrina.  Hans can probably say more.  Wonderful to see a natural stand of the plants.  Will you be able to collect seed later in the year?  That would be very cool!  I have but one that will bloom today or tomorrow, which I grew from seed.  Hopefully it will come true.

[Hans J]

yes -it is for shure P. peregrina -may be P. peregrina v. romanica

I'm a bit surprised for the growing situation ....it look like a open area - right ?

I have visit before many years two populations in south italy ( with the help of italian botanists ) .....this plants grows more in woods or on clearings - on one location was it mixed with P. mascula ....and I saw some hybrids !

[Sinchets]

Jamie, we have every intention of going back to collect seed. There were so many flowers and so many developing pods, there that I am sure nature can spare us a few seeds.
Hans, there are 2 distinct populations: one growing in the beach woodland on the slopes of the escarpment, which has wider leaves and 10 petals; and one growing on the ridge of the excarpment in open grassland and scrub, these have narrower leaves and fuller petals. On the day we visited the heat was blistering, yet the Paeonies were in full flower in full sun with Thlaictrum aquilegifolium (a species we have only seen wild in shady woods in the past).

[Sinchets]

Flowering today- Paeonia peregrina (originally from Kelways)

[Ragged Robin]

love it - and so will the bees 

[Paul T]

Lovely, Simon.

[David Nicholson]

Here is a plant I bought as a seedling from Slack Top Nursery three years ago and flowering for the first time. The label says "Paeonia anomola?" Google tells me that this species is a little mixed up. Does anyone think it isn't P anomola?

[Diane Clement]

It's very similar to P veitchii, I don't think I can tell the difference and I believe the taxonomists are also confused 

[Sinchets]

I agree with Diane, David. It looks like the P.veitchii I have had too. Pis I have seen of anomla have much more finally dissected leaves and redder flowers. I think the P.anomala I have coming on from seed will be P.veitchii too looking at their leaves. 

[johnw]

This one is labelled Paeonia anomala and I think it came from Vera Peck.  Seems to have a lot of data, the collection site etc as was typical of Vera - everything but the collector's birth date and phone number - which I will pass along when I find my glasses in the garden. The flower is a bit redder than shown and the bud scales bluer.  Does it look right?

johnw

[David Nicholson]

Now I am confused. I can see the similarities between my plant and Diane's Paeonia veitchii in their leaf forms. I'm no good at taxonomic terms so I can't describe them properly but the only difference seems to be the colour (and that may well be down to differing light conditions or possibly growing conditions) with mine a much lighter green. The leaves on your plant John seem much wider and indeed solid (if you see what I mean!)

Found this on Google  http://www.cababstractsplus.org/abstracts/Abstract.aspx?AcNo=20043099334  which if I understand it correctly makes P. veitchii a subspecies of P. anomola

[Regelian]

From what I've read about the anomola-veitchii contingency is that anomola blooms a few weeks before veitchii, bears its flowers singly, while those of veitchii are normally in 2s and 3s and smaller.  Foliage is minimally finer for veitchii, but not a good indicator.  The carpels for anomola are glabrous, while for veitchii they are tormentose.

If these differences are correct, then the species should be easy to seperate from the carpels alone.

I have a plant in the garden that I purchased as veitchii, but it flowers before my anomola.  It does have multi-flowers per stem and the flowers are smaller than anomola and violet-purple.  The leaves are finer cut than my anomola.

My anomola has pinker flowers, held singly and much larger.

[Sinchets]

P.anomola looks very different here to the pics in 'Perennials' by Phillips and Rix. Could it be a mistake in naming that has been passed down with the plants?

[Lesley Cox]

Maybe it's an anomaly David.

[johnw]

re: Paeonia anomala 

Having found my glasses I now can see the book and the faded original label from Vera:  Source: AC 11/96, C. Asia, to 18", crimson red, open birch forest, 3....

Obviously this is a hybrid.  I suspect the AC may be Alleyne Cook of North Vancouver as there is no Paeonia anomala seed on the 1995 or 1996 AGCBC seed exs.
   
It will be interesting to see the flower, foliage is pretty good.

johnw