Paeonia suffruticosa (tree peony) is native to China, where it is known as Mudan.  In front of the Audience Hall of Mu Tsung Huang Ti … there were planted thousand-petalled tree-peonies. When the flowers first opened the fragrance of their perfume was perceived by everyone. Each blossom had a thousand petals, large and deeply red. Every time His Majesty gazed upon the sweet-scented luxuriance he would sigh and say, ‘Surely such a flower has never before existed among men!’ (Ninth-Century Chinese Writer) Science and Civilisation in China: Volume 6: Biology and Biological Technology, Part 1, Botany, by Joseph Needham (Cambridge University Press 1986).  The tree peony is not actually a “tree” but more of a woody-shrub preferring some shade from harsh afternoon noon. The woody stalks produce the next season’s flowers and should be left in tact throughout the winter (unlike herbaceous peonies which die to the ground each season). They are very slow to establish, but well worth the wait. Huge blooms appear in mid-spring (before herbaceous peonies) and the flowers are surrounded by lovely fern-like foliage with a reddish tinge.  

Paeonia suffruticosa (tree peony) is native to China, where it is known as Mudan. 

In front of the Audience Hall of Mu Tsung Huang Ti … there were planted thousand-petalled tree-peonies. When the flowers first opened the fragrance of their perfume was perceived by everyone. Each blossom had a thousand petals, large and deeply red. Every time His Majesty gazed upon the sweet-scented luxuriance he would sigh and say, ‘Surely such a flower has never before existed among men!’ (Ninth-Century Chinese Writer)

Science and Civilisation in China: Volume 6: Biology and Biological Technology, Part 1, Botany, by Joseph Needham (Cambridge University Press 1986). 

The tree peony is not actually a “tree” but more of a woody-shrub preferring some shade from harsh afternoon noon. The woody stalks produce the next season’s flowers and should be left in tact throughout the winter (unlike herbaceous peonies which die to the ground each season). They are very slow to establish, but well worth the wait. Huge blooms appear in mid-spring (before herbaceous peonies) and the flowers are surrounded by lovely fern-like foliage with a reddish tinge.  

Every American needs to know about this American hero, Jeff Bauman, who lost both of his legs in the Boston marathon bombing. He looked into the eyes of the bomber who set the bomb down in front of him, two minutes before it exploded. While he was in the hospital in critical care, he was able to provide police with information and a description which helped them narrow their search, enabling them to more quickly identify the suspects. Bauman has employer-sponsored heath insurance with Costco, but it will only pay a fraction of Bauman’s expenses due to the massively high cost of his medical bills, and a pair of prosthetic legs.   PLEASE SHARE, PLEASE DONATE. Information, here. 

Every American needs to know about this American hero, Jeff Bauman, who lost both of his legs in the Boston marathon bombing. He looked into the eyes of the bomber who set the bomb down in front of him, two minutes before it exploded. While he was in the hospital in critical care, he was able to provide police with information and a description which helped them narrow their search, enabling them to more quickly identify the suspects.

Bauman has employer-sponsored heath insurance with Costco, but it will only pay a fraction of Bauman’s expenses due to the massively high cost of his medical bills, and a pair of prosthetic legs.  

PLEASE SHARE, PLEASE DONATE. Information, here. 

bible-garden: Rose-Shaped Map of Bohemia (1677) “A map that shows Bohemia as a stylised Hapsburg rose. The stem firmly connects the flowering Bohemian rose to the fertile soil of Vienna, the Habsburg’s political centre. The Latin text at the bottom explains: “’There grew a graceful Rose in the Bohemian woods, and an armoured lion standing guard next to her. That Rose had grown out of the blood of Mars, not of Venus. […] Do not fear, lovely Rose! There comes the Austrian. […] The Rose of Bohemia, bloody for all the centuries, where more than 80 battles were waged. She has been now drawn in this form for the first time.’”

bible-garden:

Rose-Shaped Map of Bohemia (1677)

“A map that shows Bohemia as a stylised Hapsburg rose. The stem firmly connects the flowering Bohemian rose to the fertile soil of Vienna, the Habsburg’s political centre. The Latin text at the bottom explains:

“’There grew a graceful Rose in the Bohemian woods, and an armoured lion standing guard next to her. That Rose had grown out of the blood of Mars, not of Venus. […] Do not fear, lovely Rose! There comes the Austrian. […] The Rose of Bohemia, bloody for all the centuries, where more than 80 battles were waged. She has been now drawn in this form for the first time.’”

Crepis virens (Hawk’s Beard, aka garden weed). Flora Batava (Plants of the Netherlands, 1877), Vol. 15.  Crepis Virens: “Crepis, Pliny, is from the Greek crepis, a kind of boot; and the second Latin name means green, fresh. It was called Hawkbit because the hawk was supposed to pluck it and smear its eyes with it to improve its vision.” ~British Wildflowers in Their Natural Haunts (1919)

Crepis virens (Hawk’s Beard, aka garden weed). Flora Batava (Plants of the Netherlands, 1877), Vol. 15. 

Crepis Virens: “Crepis, Pliny, is from the Greek crepis, a kind of boot; and the second Latin name means green, fresh. It was called Hawkbit because the hawk was supposed to pluck it and smear its eyes with it to improve its vision.” ~British Wildflowers in Their Natural Haunts (1919)

An open meadow is transformed when the crabapples bloom.  

Malus ‘Prairifire’ (Crabapple) is a medium-sized flowering landscape tree with a rounded head for full sun, preferring moderately wet soil. (The trees in these photos are planted along the edge of a natural streambed running through a wide open meadow.) ‘Prairifire’ is one of the best crabapple trees for the southeast, resisting many of the usual problems that Malus is known for. The April flowers are followed by masses of small crabapple fruits that persist into fall, a favorite fruit for birds.  

Crabapples are effective in mass plantings, but because they are considered smaller landscape trees, they are also a good choice for patio trees, or specimens for the front yard. 

A chart from NCSU showing the best crabapple trees for the landscape can be found here.