ON PEONIES 267 



be raised from seed, and the best plan is to sow in a 

 box in September, and put it in a cold frame. The 

 seedlings will probably appear in spring, and when they 

 are strong they may be set out in rows a foot apart, and 

 hoed between to keep down weeds. If the soil is good 

 they will be strong plants by autumn. By using seed 

 bought from a firm which specialises in Paeonies the 

 grower may rely on getting good varieties, some single, 

 others double. 



Species and Varieties. The name Paeony is said to 

 derive from one Paeon, a physician. Albiflora (white- 

 flowered) was a Siberian plant, and we should therefore 

 expect its offspring to be hardy, as, indeed, the Peonies 

 are. Officinalis cannot be located with certainty. It is 

 described in the records as of " European origin," which 

 is pleasantly vague. The old double red Paeony of 

 cottage gardens is the officinalis rubra plena of the 

 botanists. It is a fine, and at the same time a cheap, 

 plant. The old double white and double rose are 

 respectively officinalis alba plena and officinalis rosea 

 plena. There is a handsome species called by 

 botanists tenuifolia, which is illustrated in the Botanical 

 Magazine, t. 226. This is often grown under the name 

 of the Fennel-leaved Paeony. It has red flowers, and 

 there is a double form of it. The Anemone-flowered 

 Pseony (anemon&flora] is a variety of officinalis. Witt- 

 manniana is a notable though rather expensive species, 

 with primrose-coloured flowers. It is illustrated in the 

 Botanical Magazine, t. 6645. 



While the Paeony-lover likes to know of the species 

 of his favourite flower, his interest lies mainly in the 

 modern varieties, and to those we may turn, for the list 

 of species is short and (considered from the garden stand- 

 point) unimportant. 



