J. L. HUDSON, SEEDSMAN, BOX 337, LA HONDA, CALIFORNIA 94020-0337 USA

Plant of the Week

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PAEONIA (pe-O-nee-a)
PAEONIACEAE. Hardy and long-lived perennials or shrubs from thick roots. The species come true from seed and are interesting to grow, blooming in about 3 years. Any soil, but dig deeply. Herbaceous kinds bloom best in cold climates. Sow spring to fall, root germinates in 1 - 8 months, top growth emerges the next spring. Year-old seed often germinates best. Always hold pot over at least one year in a moist shady spot. Seed viable 3 - 4 years, giving good germination.
—Paeonia ostii. (5) PAEO-66. Packet: $3.00
25 seed: $10.00, 100 seed: $20.00 (Shipping weight 1 oz), 1000 seed: $150.00 (Shipping weight 10 oz)
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'FENG DAN BAI'. Rare Chinese medicinal plant. Large white 5 - 7" (rarely 10") wide flowers are rarely pinkish, often fragrant, with 11 - 14 petals. Hardy tree peony to 5 feet, with lanceolate pinnate leaves. Gansu, Anhui, Shaanxi and Henan provinces of China, in bright shade in deciduous forests. Zone 4 - 8. Only described in 1992, this species is still very rare outside China, where it is sometimes cultivated for the medicinal roots, called mudanpi. Early blooming, and the buds are frost tolerant. Easy from seed - needs a warm period to form the root (3 - 8 weeks), and then 4 - 8 weeks cold to break the leaf dormancy. Hold pots several years for all to germinate. A few will bloom the third year from seed, all will bloom by year 5 or 6. "This is a good, tough landscape plant!"—Adam Turtle.

We were very lucky to get this seed - it is quite rare in cultivation. If started early, you can get leaf growth the first season. Germinate on moist paper towels in a plastic bag at warm temperatures. A single root will emerge. Let this develop a couple of weeks, then move to the refrigerator for 4 weeks to break leaf dormancy, and out again and plant in pots. So if you start in May, get roots by the end of June, July in the 'fridge, out in August, the leaves will have a chance to develop before frost, saving you a year. Using 100 - 200ppm GA-3 can speed germination and break leaf dormancy without cold.