THE CHINESE TREE PH20NY. 
The Tree Pceony is found wild on the mountains of the 
central provinces of China, and is cultivated as a garden 
plant in all parts of the Empire. It was first seen by- 
Europeans in the gardens about Canton, but it is not 
indigenous to that part of China. The Canton garden¬ 
ers carry on a large trade with the Moutan growers, who 
bring the plants yearly in boats from the provinces of 
Hoo-nan and the western parts of Kiangnan, a distance 
of at least 1,000 miles. This takes place in winter when 
the plants are leafless and in a state of rest; the roots 
are packed in baskets, open at the top, with scarcely any 
soil adhering to them; in this simple manner they are 
distributed over all the Empire without suffering any in¬ 
jury. On theirarrival intliesouth they are immediately 
potted by the purchasers, and owing to the difference 
in the temperature soon come into bloom. As soon as 
bought up by the natives to ornament their balconies, 
halls, and gardens. The price of each plant depends, 
not upon its size or strength, but upon the number of 
flower-buds it has upon it. This is reasonable enough 
when the circumstances of the case are considered. 
The Moutan, when brought into the hot climate of the 
south, will not thrive for any length of time. As it is 
strong and vigorous when received, it blooms well the 
first year, but, being deprived of its natural period of 
rest—that is, a cold winter—it soon gets out of health, 
and although it may continue to exist, is ever afterwards 
quite worthless as an ornamental flower. The southern 
Chinese rarely attempt to preserve it after it has once 
bloomed. This circumstance keeps up the constant 
yearly trade between the Moutan country and Canton. 
This, then, is the first lesson in Moutan cultivation—that 
is, we may give it as much heat as we like in summer, 
but it must have a period of perfect rest in winter. 
I may mention here, that a few years ago Mi - . Bate- 
men presented to the Royal Horticultural Society his 
collection of Moutans for their gardens at South Ken¬ 
sington. They were in the most perfect health, and 
with proper care ought to have done admirably. But 
this mistake was made—they were planted in a house 
which was heated in winter; in fact, they were treated 
like the Canton plants, and I fancy met with the same 
fate. 
When I discovered the Moutans in the garden .near 
Shanghai, I found that the varieties were mostly differ¬ 
ent from those met with at Canton. The Shanghai 
country had not been visited by the Canton florists. 
The Chinese are a curious people in many respects. 
They had discovered the plant in Hoo-nan and Kiang¬ 
nan, and had kept on from year to year suppljdng them¬ 
selves from those quarters. Thus nearly all my plants 
were new, and very beautiful many of them were. 
Among the colors of the flowers were red of many dif¬ 
ferent hues, white, blush, and lilac, all exceedingly 
beautiful. In my instructions from the Horticultural 
Society I was told to look out for a blue Moutan; I found 
a lilac one, which was pretty near it. And where are 
all these flue varieties now ? I fear most of them are 
lost to our gardens. 
I have already said that the Moutan requires a warm 
summer, and a complete rest in winter. That it will 
succeed perfectly in England is proved by the examples 
I have already given at Spring Grove and other places. 
Why then should such a beautiful plant be so much ne¬ 
glected ? I think I can point to the cause, and I shall 
now endeavor to do so. 
The propagation and management of the plant seems 
to be much better understood by the Chinese about 
Shanghai than in England. Our nurserymen always 
complain that they cannot propagate it with facility, 
and consequently this fine flower is invariably high in 
price. Let me now point out the Chinese method of 
propagation. 
Propagation by suckers and cutting is completely 
ignored. In the beginning of October large quantities 
of the roots of a herbaceous Preony are seen heaped up 
in sheds and other outhouses, which are intended to be 
used as stocks for the Moutan. The bundles of tubers 
which form the root are potted in pieces, and each of 
the finger-like rootlets forms a stock upon which the 
Moutan is destined to be grafted. Having thrown a 
large number of the rootlets upon the pptting bench, 
the scions are then brought from the plants which it is 
desirable to increase. Each scion used is no more than 
It inch or 2 inches in length, and is the point of a shoot 
formed during the bygone summer. Its base is cut in 
the form of a wedge and inserted in the crown of the 
finger-like tuber. This is then tied up and clayed round 
in the usual way, and the operation is complete. When 
a large number of plants have been prepared in this 
manner they are taken to the nursery, where they are 
planted in rows about 1 foot or 14 feet apart, with the 
same distance between the rows. In planting, the bud 
or point of the scion is the only part which is left above¬ 
ground; the point between the stock and scion, where 
the union is destined to take place, is always buried be¬ 
neath the surface. Kaempfer states that the Chinese 
propagate the Moutan by budding; but this must be a 
mistake, as budding is never practised in the country, 
and is not understood. 
Many thousands of plants are grafted in this manner 
every autumn, and the vacant spaces which one sees in 
the rows attest the success which attends the system; 
indeed it is rare that a graft fails to grow. In about a 
fortnight the union between the root and the scion is 
complete, and in the following spring the plants are well 
established and strong. They frequently bloom the 
first spring, and rarely later than the second, when they 
are dug up and taken to the markets for sale. When 
each has only one stem and one flower-bud, it is of more 
value in the eyes of the Shanghai nurseryman than when 
it becomes larger. 
I have thus shown that the Moutan can be easily cul¬ 
tivated in Europe. I have given its history in China, and 
pointed out that it requires a period of rest in winter; I 
have also described how it is cultivated and propagated 
in its native country. I may add that I sent home a 
large quantity of the herbaceous kind which the Chinese 
use as a stock for grafting, to Messrs. Standish and 
Noble, many years ago. This is probably in the country, 
and may still be procured. 
In conclusion, I have only to add that were our country 
