Peonies are really smart plants.
They secrete a sticky substance to attract ants. This is their built in defense against damaging pests. The ants attack the pests and lick up all the sticky sweet secretions - everyone wins!
Peonies can also live up to 100 years - which is quite a nice long life for a plant.
The petals are also edible. Of course, you want to be using organic from the garden petals and not those from the flower stores. Sprinkle them in salads and they look gorgeous! I like to dry petals to use for decorating & making beautiful things later on. Here are some interesting details on the nutritional aspects of peonies.
There are websites dedicated to caring for peonies but I can't help anyone with that, the beautiful vibrant and healthy peonies that we have in the garden, have themselves to thank for their perfection. I do nothing at all to care for them and don't even know what variety they are.
In Chinese medicine White Peony Root (Bai Shao) is a widely used herb regarded by herbalists and Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners. It exhibits a broad spectrum of therapeutic applications, since ancient times scholars have described it as a substance that can enter and affect almost all organ networks. source I don't know if other varieties of peony roots can be used similarily - something I'll have to study when I have some time.
The season for peonies always seems shockingly short, it seems to be over only a few weeks after they bloom.In my experience it is guaranteed that a rain storm will come along and batter them as soon as they open and so I grabbed my camera to capture them all wet and dewy just after a rain shower.
I think they are worth a closer look. Don't you?
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