'NUMBER ONE RED' Tree Peony (Suffruticosa x 'shou an hong/number one red')

首案红; Shou An Hong; Number One red.

'Shou An Hong' is unique amongst tree peonies for both its root color and its triploid genetics. A traditional and very ancient cultivar, it is also called 'Purple Root Tree Peony' in older references. In Chinese folklore it is said that the Celestial Peony Boy accidentally dripped red ink on the roots of a tree peony he was painting. He then had no choice but but to complete his misstep and painted the entire peony red. He transformed his painting of this red-rooted peony into a seed and dropped it to earth. The seed fell into Wang Shou An's garden. This celestial seed grew to become the most magnificent of tree peonies having purple-red roots and bearing glossy purple-red flowers. It's roots are used in traditional Chinese medicine and it's dried flowers as a very pleasant tea.

Sturdy branches support fully-double crown-shaped blossoms of dark magenta-red. The six-inch blossoms are very fragrant and stand up to heat and bright sunlight very well. The foliage is large and attractive with pubescence on the reverse and fully cloak the bushes which can reach upwards of seven-feet at full maturity. Stunning. Mid-season. 

Zones 4-9

Bare roots are available only in the LATE-FALL and WINTER.