May’s Hero Flower: The Peony

The peony enters May like someone who knows they are the main character. Silk skirts of petals. Fragrance that drifts through the garden. Blooms so extravagant they look faintly unreal, as though painted by a Dutch master.

And yet beneath all that softness sits a flower with astonishing depth. The peony is ancient. Medicinal. Symbolic. Romantic. Imperial. A little mysterious. One of the oldest cultivated flowers on earth, and still, somehow, the bloom that wins our hearts over every single spring.

The History of the Peony

The peony belongs to the genus Paeonia and has been cultivated for well over 2,000 years. Ancient Chinese emperors adored them so fiercely that they became known as “the king of flowers.” In China, peonies symbolised wealth, honour, femininity, and prosperity, and were planted in imperial palace gardens as status symbols long before orchids and hydrangeas began their modern social climbing.

By the Tang Dynasty, peony obsession had become serious business. Paintings, poetry, silk embroidery, ceramics. The flower appeared everywhere. Some rare varieties were reportedly worth fortunes. Which honestly feels believable once you’ve seen a fully open coral peony glowing in evening light.

The peony later travelled through Japan and into Europe, where monks cultivated it in monastery gardens for medicinal purposes during the Middle Ages. Peonies even appeared in Charlemagne’s famous plant lists in 812 CE.

Its botanical name comes from Greek mythology. Paeon, physician to the gods, supposedly used the plant medicinally, which enraged his teacher Asclepius so dramatically that Zeus turned him into the peony flower to save him. Greek mythology truly never met a situation it couldn’t make theatrically complicated.

An Imperial Legend: The Peony That Refused

There is one story that quietly deepens the peony’s meaning, and it feels too good not to linger on.

During the reign of Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in Chinese history, a command was issued that all flowers must bloom in the dead of winter to please her court.

And most did.

All except the peony.

The peony refused.

It stood firm against the unnatural demand, choosing not to bloom out of season. Enraged, Wu Zetian ordered the peonies banished and their branches burned. Charred, scattered, seemingly ruined.

And yet, come spring, they bloomed more beautifully than ever.

From that moment, the peony took on a deeper symbolism in Chinese culture. Not just wealth and beauty. But perseverance. Integrity. The quiet courage to stand your ground when something does not feel right.

A flower with a backbone. Which, frankly, makes you love her even more.

The Deeper Meaning: Living in the Tao

This legend sits within the wider philosophy of the Tang Dynasty, a time when art, poetry, and nature were deeply intertwined.

At the heart of it all sits the idea of living in the Tao. A simple but rather life-altering thought. Move with nature, not against it.

The peony does not bloom in winter because it is told to. It blooms when it is ready. When the soil has warmed. When the light returns. When the moment is right.

And that is the lesson.

True beauty. True prosperity. True joy. None of it comes from forcing things out of season.

It comes from timing. From alignment. From trusting that your own unfolding is happening exactly as it should.

Rather like the peony itself.

Why Are Peonies So Loved?

Because they feel fleeting.

Peony season is heartbreakingly short. One minute the buds are tight as golf balls, and the next they erupt into clouds of petals before disappearing again almost as quickly. You wait all year for them. Then suddenly it is June, and they’re gone.

That brevity gives them emotional weight. Peonies remind people to notice things while they’re here.

They also happen to be absurdly beautiful.

Their petals look painted. Their fragrance can fill an entire room. Their stems have movement and softness that florists adore. Brides love them. Gardeners become mildly evangelical about them. 

Peonies in Art & Literature

Few flowers appear in art as frequently as the peony. Chinese brush paintings celebrated them for centuries, while Dutch Golden Age painters adored their heavy, layered forms and dramatic shadows.

In Western art, peonies often represented romance, prosperity, beauty, and the fleeting nature of life. One remarkable example is Black Woman with Peonies by the French Impressionist painter Frédéric Bazille. Painted in 1870, the work depicts a Black woman surrounded by extravagant peonies and spring flowers, her direct gaze quietly challenging the conventions of European portraiture at the time. Unlike many 19th-century paintings that reduced Black figures to decorative symbols, Bazille’s portrait gives the woman dignity, individuality, and presence.

In Victorian floriography, peonies represented romance, bashfulness, prosperity, and happy marriage. This explains why they still dominate wedding season every May and June.

They also appear throughout literature as symbols of beauty that cannot last forever. A bit dramatic perhaps. But entirely accurate.

Black Woman with Peonies by Frédéric Bazille (1870), located at the Musée Fabre, Montpellier

A Fictional Book Connected to Peonies

If the peony were a novel, it would probably be Peony in Love by Lisa See. Set in 17th-century China, it follows a young woman consumed by love, poetry, and the haunting beauty of The Peony Pavilion opera. The novel mirrors the peony itself. Romantic, layered, fleeting, and quietly heartbreaking. 

Have Peonies Been Used in Medicine?

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, white peony root known as “Bai Shao” has historically been used to support women’s health, muscle cramps, inflammation, circulation, pain relief, and calming the nervous system.

Ancient remedies used peony roots and seeds for headaches, asthma, menstrual discomfort, and inflammatory conditions. Modern studies continue to explore compounds in Paeonia species for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

That said, medicinal herbs are not harmless simply because they are natural. Peony supplements can interact with medications and should never replace professional medical advice. 

Peony Fragrance: Which Variety Smells the Strongest?

• Sarah Bernhardt — sweet classic rose scent
• Festiva Maxima — fresh citrus rose fragrance
• Duchesse de Nemours — lemony floral perfume
• Karl Rosenfield — rich traditional peony scent
• Madame Isaac Pereire tree peonies — intensely perfumed

The most powerfully scented peonies are usually the old-fashioned double varieties. The huge frilly ones that look as though they belong in an oil painting beside a scandalous love letter.

How Many Varieties of Peonies Exist?

There are believed to be over 6,500 cultivated varieties worldwide.

The main groups are:

• Herbaceous peonies
• Tree peonies
• Intersectional or Itoh peonies

Colours range from pure white and shell pink to coral, crimson, plum, butter yellow, and near black burgundy shades. The only colour peonies do not naturally produce is true blue. Nature drew the line there apparently.

How Long Do Peonies Last in a Vase?

Usually, it takes around 5 to 10 days, depending on the variety and stage of opening.

Florist secret: buy them when the buds feel like marshmallows. Not rock hard. Not fully open. That soft squishy stage is the sweet spot.

Another florist trick? Dip the woody stems in warm water before arranging. And keep them away from fruit bowls. Apples quietly release ethylene gas, which ages flowers faster. Tiny floral assassins.

How to Grow Peonies in the Garden

Peonies are surprisingly low maintenance once established. In fact many peonies live for decades. Some for over 100 years.

Peony Growing Secrets

• Plant them in full sun or very light shade
• Ensure soil drains well
• Never plant herbaceous peonies too deep
• Feed yearly with balanced fertiliser
• Avoid moving them unnecessarily

The biggest mistake gardeners make is burying the crown too deeply. Peonies are wonderfully dramatic about this and simply refuse to flower properly. RHS guidance recommends planting herbaceous peonies only 2.5 to 5cm below soil level.

Best Time to Plant

Autumn is ideal though winter and early spring can work for tree peonies.

Do Peonies Like Pots?

Some do. Itoh peonies especially can work beautifully in large containers with excellent drainage. But they truly shine once settled into garden borders where their roots can establish properly over time.

Patience is key. Peonies are not instant gratification flowers. They take a few years to mature then suddenly reward you with spectacular blooms like a period drama heroine descending a staircase.

Peony Fun Facts

• Ants on peony buds are completely normal. They drink sugary nectar and do not harm the flowers.
• Some peony plants can outlive the gardeners who planted them.
• Peonies are the state flower of Indiana.
• They can survive temperatures as low as -20°C. Elegant and resilient. We love a multitasker.
• Tree peonies are technically shrubs not trees.

Peony Inspired Recipe: Rose & Peony Strawberry Fool

A soft pink dessert feels mandatory in May.

You’ll Need

• 300g strawberries
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp rose water
• 300ml whipped cream
• Crushed meringue
• Edible peony petals (unsprayed only)

Method

Roast strawberries lightly with honey until soft. Cool completely. Fold through whipped cream with rose water and crushed meringue. Scatter edible peony petals over the top.

Places in the UK That Celebrate Peonies

If you want to see peonies properly showing off, these gardens are worth visiting during late spring:

• RHS Garden Wisley
• Kew Gardens
• Primrose Hall Peonies
• Bodnant Garden

Many English country gardens feature extraordinary late May peony displays, especially alongside roses, alliums, nepeta, and lady’s mantle. Essentially, the floral equivalent of an impossibly attractive friendship group.

Final Thoughts

Perhaps the reason peonies remain so adored is that they contain contradictions.

They are delicate yet hardy. Ancient yet modern. Romantic yet resilient. Luxurious yet deeply rooted in medicine and folklore.

And for one brief moment every May, they transform gardens, kitchens, flower markets, and dining tables into something softer and more hopeful.

Not bad for a flower that spends most of the year looking like absolutely nothing at all.

So if May finds you feeling a little behind or a little impatient, consider this your gentle nudge. You are not late. You are simply not in bloom yet.

And when you are, it will be entirely unmistakable.

With Love, Sandy