Paeonia suffruticosa Luo Yang Hong

Paeonia suffruticosa 'Luo Yang Hong', nicknamed the "Red of Luoyang", is a variety of Chinese tree peony that blooms early in the spring. It is characterised by a stout habit, dense foliage, and large pompom flowers in a beautiful shade of red that leans towards pink, close to magenta. Although dense, the upright flowers do reveal their golden stamens late on. The very hardy bush is easy to grow in any good garden soil. It will live for many years without requiring much care, after careful planting. An old tree peony plant needs no description, it is simply admired, either as a specimen or as the focal point of a shrub border.

The 'Luoyang Hong' tree peony is a Chinese hybrid. It is a beautiful descendant of Paeonia suffruticosa, native to central China. This extraordinary species, cultivated for about 1500 years in China and two centuries in Europe, has given rise to numerous cultivars with single or double flowers, in all colours except true blue. The wild form, truly enigmatic, has never been formally identified. In contrast to herbaceous peonies, Paeonia suffruticosa develops woody stems, one or more small trunks, and sparsely branched knotty branches that persist throughout the year, like those of shrubs. Its foliage is deciduous, emerging in spring and falling in autumn, sometimes taking on beautiful hues late in the season, depending on the variety. All these plants from the Far East are very hardy. They belong to the Ranunculaceae family.

"Luo Yang Hong" forms a semi-erect bush with dense foliage, reaching 1.30 m (4ft), or even 1.50 m (5ft) in all directions under good growing conditions. The short, upright branches bear leaves divided into lanceolate leaflets, rather short, dense, smooth, strongly veined, bronze-coloured when they emerge, quickly becoming light green. Each leaf is carried on a bronze petiole. The flowering of this variety occurs over a period of 3 weeks in April, at the beginning of the tree peony season. A 3-year-old plant will produce a single flower in the first year, but 50 after 20 years of cultivation. It starts with very large solitary buds, green and round, appearing at the end of winter at the tips of new shoots, and resistant to late frosts. They open into nearly double corollas, upright or held horizontally, measuring 16cm (6in) in diameter. They are composed of multiple petals arranged in a regular manner. The flower's centre is occupied by golden yellow stamens, more visible towards the end of flowering.

The tree peony is not a plant for impatient gardeners. It takes its time, but years of patience are rewarded with the fabulous spectacle created by this opulent shrub covered in huge flowers in spring. In the garden, the 'Luoyang Hong' tree peony will be sumptuous as a specimen against a wall, in the foreground of a hedge, or in a border under tall trees, but always sheltered from winds and in a bright, airy location. Its magnificent flowers will be enhanced by those of other peonies in white, dark pink, purple, or mauve, clusters of lilacs in mauve, purple, or white, or early-flowering China roses (Old Blush). This plant also pairs well with other perennials that bloom before or after it, such as bearded irises or bellflowers.