The Plantsman Looks Into the Midsummer Peony

PlantsmanThe Little is known about the origin of a double-flowered peony found in gardens of Nordic countries The midsummer Mari Marstein by All photographs peony revisited Mari Marstein looks further into the identity of a Nordic peony and gives it a cultivar name he so-called midsummer Public inquiry distribution in gardens. One is peony of Finland was last In 2008 I asked readers for around Trondheim Fjord in mid Twritten about in these pages information in Norsk Hagetidend, Norway, another is by Bokna Fjord nearly five years ago (Peltola 2008). a Norwegian gardening magazine. in the southwest, and a third in an This peony is common in parts of I received 29 responses concerning inland area northeast of Oslo (where Norway as well, and here I will this peony. Most told the same story: I am based). The climates in these discuss its history in the Nordic they had inherited the plant from areas are strikingly different, from countries and its nomenclature. relatives, friends or neighbours, and the mild, wet coastal climate in the When I started working at Gamle they knew little about it except that west to the dry, inland climate with Hvam museum, south Norway, in ‘it has always been here’. Many had cold winters and warm summers in 1980 there was a small peony searched for its name in books, the east. This does not seem to growing in the garden. Gradually I magazines or on the internet, affect the peony’s growth. became aware of the peculiarity of without success. Common names in the plant. It was different from Norway include bondepion (peasant’s Literature references peonies mentioned or pictured in peony), bonderose (peasant’s rose), or Peltola (2008) quotes a description gardening literature. Though it was ‘old-fashioned peony’, to distinguish from The Garden Book of Sir Thomas rather common locally, I never saw it it from Paeonia officinalis ‘Rubra Plena’. Hanmer (1659) in which he refers to in other districts. This triggered my My inquiry and further research three types of double peony: the curiosity. revealed three clusters of common crimson, the blush, and ➤ March 2013 47 plant history the deeper crimson or purple with a smaller, paler, less cut leaf. I agree with her that the last appears to refer to our plant. In Robert Sweet’s The British Flower Garden (1823–25), a peony called Paeonia paradoxa ß fimbriata is illustrated and described: ‘This beautiful variety of P. paradoxa had generally passed in our nurseries for a variety of P. humilis, until its species had been determined by the late Mr. Anderson, and Mr. Sabine, in the Horticultural and Linnean Transactions, […] The present variety is readily distinguished from the double ones of the other species, by its humbler growth, and pubescent leaves, […] Our drawing was taken at the nursery of Messrs. Whitley, Brames, and Milne, of the Fulham Nursery’. The illustration is identical to our plant except for one thing: the darker colour of the staminodes in the drawing. However, this is probably an artistic device to distinguish staminodes from petals. The split tips of the staminodes are identical. Around the same time, a peony named Paeonia humilis flore pleno was listed in the botanical garden in Oslo in 1823. In 1849 an Oslo nurseryman, Andreas Hansen, included it in his Norsk Havebog Comparison of leaves and follicles of Paeonia officinalissubsp. huthii (left) and Paeonia officinalis‘Nordic (1849) under the same name. Paradox’ (right). The former is the closest taxon morphologically to the Nordic cultivar. Peltola (2008) also cites other humilis var. villosa: ‘The earliest name P. paradoxa var. fimbriata to potential references to our peony, varietal name of this plant is the name P. humilis reassures me that such as Harding (1917) and Saunders P. paradoxa var. fimbriata of Sabine this plant was known in Oslo in the (in Boyd 1928). Harding does not (l.c.), but the epithet “fimbriata” 19th century. refer to double varieties of P. humilis, must be rejected under Article 65 of which she considers a variety of the International Rules of Botanical Monastery locations P. peregrina. However, she does refer Nomenclature since this epithet was It is notable that many of the to a variety, fimbriata, of P. paradoxa based on a monstrosity’. Norwegian specimens are located with semi-double flowers of bright It is my opinion that the plant close to Catholic monastery sites. crimson, with inner petals ‘narrow referred to by the above authors Catholicism was outlawed between like a fringe’. Saunders mentions under the epithet fimbriata (and 1537 and 1843 but these sites pre- fimbriata plena and violacea sphaerica P. humilis flore pleno) is the same as date that. In mid Norway there among ‘varieties probably to be the peony discussed here. Sweet were monasteries at Tautra and referred to P. paradoxa’. confirms that it grew in Fulham Trondheim, and earlier at Nidaros. Stern (1946) writes about Paeonia around 1820, and the linking of the By the Bokna fjord there were 48 March 2013 PlantsmanThe desCriPtion of paeonia officinalis ‘nordiC Paradox’ regarded as a synonym of P. officinalis Height at flowering 65–70cm. Leaves divided into 3 leaflets, further divided into by Hong (2010). As our plant is broadly lanceolate lobes; upper surface of leaves green, slightly glaucous (close to probably of cultivated origin, and 137C); lower surface grey-green (194A); petioles and lower surface hairy. Flower to avoid further confusion, I think buds deep purple, opening dark pink-purple (71B) which fades slightly as the a cultivar name is more appropriate. flower ages; an outer row of broad, rounded petals surrounds a centre of petals and I therefore propose the name staminodes which are split at the apex and sometimes edged with pollen; carpels Paeonia officinalis ‘Nordic Paradox’ pale green, pubescent; stigmas clear pink. The flowers have a faint, sweet scent. (see box for description). It flowers in southeast Norway in early or mid June for one week, coinciding with P. officinalis ‘Rubra Plena’. This name refers to aspects of its Colour references are to RHS Mini Colour Chart (2005). history. It is a paradox that it is still Nomenclatural standard deposited at Gamle Hvam museum, Norway. grown here after disappearing from written works decades ago. It is also monasteries at Utstein and The proximity of our peony to a paradox that it has such a limited Stavanger, and in southeast Norway monastery sites might be due to a distribution, even after hundreds of there were monasteries in Hamar stronger gardening tradition in such years in Nordic countries. and Oslo. Peltola (2008) refers to a areas, but we can not exclude the It is a beautiful and cherished 1847 nursery catalogue from Kuppis possibility of it being brought to plant and those who grow it regard where the plant is called Paeonia northern Europe by monks. it as something special. This plant is humilis flore pleno. Is it just a especially dear to me as it spurred coincidence that Kuppis is close to Conclusions my interest in historic garden plants, the old monastery in Naadendal? Despite great confusion about its which brought a new aspect to my The Swedish nurseryman Herman botanical name, it is most likely that profession here in Norway. Krupke has seen the plant in croft this peony grew in London before gardens in Sweden. Its distribution 1820, in the botanic garden in Oslo Mari Marstein is Curator at implies great age, he says, and his in 1823 and in southwest Finland in Gamle Hvam museum in Hvam, personal opinion is that it was 1849. It still grows in parts of Norway introduced by monks. Three Norway, Sweden and Finland, but referenCes specimens were reported to the outside these areas it seems to be Boyd, J (ed) (1928) Peonies, the Swedish plant conservation unknown. Manual of the American Peony Society. organisation Programmet för Odlad It is not mentioned as a wild plant American Peony Society, Mångfald. All were in Östersund, in Stern (1946), Halda & Waddick Philadelphia Sweden, and dating back to the (2004) or Hong (2010), and not as Cullen, J, Knees, SG & Cubey, 1930s. However, there were no a cultivated plant in Cullen et al. HC (2011) The European Garden monasteries in this area of Sweden. (2011). All references to our plant are Flora. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge A French reference does suggest a in other, garden-related literature. Halda, JJ & Waddick, JW (2004) link with monasteries. Rivière & Morphologically it is close to The Genus Paeonia. Heartland Peony Nédélec (2009) describe a similar P. officinalis L. subsp. huthii Soldano Society peony to ours named P. officinalis (syn. P. officinalis L. subsp. villosa Harding, A (1917) The Book of the spherica violacea. This plant still (Huth) Cullen & Heywood) but our Peony. JB Lippincott Co., grows in Jean-Luc Rivière’s nursery plant has broader leaf lobes and a Philadelphia and he was told by his father and pale green (as opposed to red-tinted) Hong, DY (2010) Peonies of the World. Kew Publishing, Kew / grandfather that it was cultivated in disc at the base of the follicles (see Missouri Botanical Garden, St Louis monasteries: ‘Spherica violacea est photographs p48). Peltola, R (2008) The midsummer une pivoine officinale très ancienne Peltola (2008) suggested referring peony of Finland. The Plantsman n.s. qui était cultivée dans les jardins de to it as Paeonia humilis Retz. However, 7(2): 114–117 simples monastères d’Europe’ Hong (2010) now regards P. humilis Rivière, J-L & Nédélec, P-Y (Rivière & Nédélec 2009). Rivière as a synonym of P. officinalis subsp. (2009) Rouge Pivoine. Marabout, only has this oral information about microcarpa.

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