THE 



Canadian Horticulturist. 



Vol. XXII. Toronto, 18 9 9. January. 



No. i 



PAEONIES AT THE CENTRAL EXPERIMENTAL 

 FARM OTTAWA, ONT. 



By Dr. Wm. Saunders, Director. 



H E paeony which is 

 said to derive its 

 name from Paeon a 

 Greek Physician 

 who first employ- 

 ed the plant medi- 

 cinally, may be 

 conveniently divi- 

 ded into two 

 groups, the her- 

 baceous paeony 

 and the tree pae- 

 ony. The herba 

 ceous paeonies 

 have tuberous 

 roots something like those of the dahlia 

 which send up stout flower stems every 

 year, which at the close of the season 

 die down. The new growth the follow- 

 ing spring is made from strong buds or 

 crowns which form on the tubers. These 

 herbaceous species have been derived 

 mainly from two wild forms, one a native 



of Switzerland Paeonia officinalis which 

 is said to have been in cultivation for 

 more than three centuries, the other a 

 Siberian species Paeonia albiftora, which 

 was first introduced in 1734. The 

 shrubby forms of the paeony known 

 also as the tree paeony have been de- 

 rived from an Asiatic species known to 

 botanists as Paeonia moutan. The tree 

 paeony is much grown in Japan, China, 

 and in the milder climates in Europe. 

 In Eastern Canada it is more or less 

 tender and unless well protected is 

 liable to be killed to the ground during 

 the winter, and even where protection 

 is afforded during the severe weather, 

 the tender shoots sometimes suffer 

 injury from spring frosts. Where 

 the tree paeony can be successfully 

 grown it is a very desirable shrub ; it 

 blooms earlier than the herbaceous 

 species and the individual flowers are 

 wonderfully large and fine. About 20 



