Family: Paeoniaceae

Origin: SW China

Most paeonies (peonies) are herbaceous perennials, but there are three or four woody species from China and Tibet, either shrubs or subshrubs, which are termed 'tree-paeonies'.

Paeonia lutea is a subshrub with deeply cut leathery leaves and handsome yellow flowers. Its original European discoverer was the French Christian missionary Pierre Delavay (1834 - 1895) who sent seeds to Paris in 1887.