Paeonia lactiflora
English: Chinese Peony; Common garden peony.
Chinese: Chi Shao Yao; Bai Shao Yao.
Region: east Asia, Siberia to Mongolia.
Habitat: dry open stony slopes, riverbanks and sparse woodland edges; woods and grasslands; elevations of 400 to 2300 metres; prefers deep rich soil, neutral or slightly alkaline; doing well in sun or light shade, prefers part shade; intolerant of waterlogged or too dry soil; lime tolerant; frost tolerant.
Content: paeoniflorin.
Use: ornamental; Chinese medicine, in Four Things Soup; root, cooked, in a broth; seed, powdered, mixed with tea.
Botany
Herb; perennial; 75 cm tall; long-lived plant, for 50 years; young branches are brittle and very subject to wind damage; grows slow.
Root: strongly resents root disturbance.
Pollination: by insects; self-fertile.