AN APPRECIATION OF THE PEONY 



7. Its permanence 



Lifting and dividing the roots are not necessary 

 for at least eight or ten years. Many varieties can 

 be left undisturbed for fifteen years or more. 



The peony has but two drawbacks — which can 

 hardly be considered obj ections. ( 1 ) It increases 

 slowly. (2) The stems of some varieties are not 

 strong enough to bear the weight of the large 

 flowers and must be supported. 



As far back as 1629, peonies were so well 

 liked and so much planted in gardens that John 

 Parkinson in his quaint book on plants, " Paradisi 

 in Sole, Paradisus Terrestris, or a Choice Garden 

 of all Sorts of Rarest Flowers," gives descrip- 

 tions of six different kinds with four interesting 

 pictures. Referring to " P^eonia femina vulgaris 

 flore plena rubra," which closely resembles and 

 in all probability was P. officinalis, he says: "This 

 double peony, as well as the former single ( P^eonia 

 femina Byzantina — the single red Peony of Con- 

 stantinople) is so frequent in every garden of 

 note, through every country, that it is almost 

 labour in vaine to describe it: but yet becaus<^ I 

 use not to pass over any plant so lightly I will 

 set down the description briefly in regard it is 



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