''Paeonia rockii'', or Rock's peony, is a woody
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...
of
tree peony that was named after
Joseph Rock
Joseph Francis Charles Rock (1884 – 1962) was an Austrian-American botanist, List of explorers, explorer, geographer, linguistics, linguist, ethnographer and photographer.
Life
Josef Franz Karl Rock was born in Vienna, Austria, the son of a s ...
. It is one of several species given the
vernacular
A vernacular or vernacular language is in contrast with a "standard language". It refers to the language or dialect that is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The vernacular is typically the native language, n ...
name tree peony, and is native to the mountains of
Gansu and adjoining provinces in
China. In
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
, it is known as ().
Uses
''Paeonia rockii'' is cultivated as an
ornamental plant
Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...
in Asia and the west. Like ''
Paeonia lactiflora
''Paeonia lactiflora'' (Chinese peony, Chinese herbaceous peony, or common garden peony) is a species of herbaceous perennial flowering plant in the family Paeoniaceae, native to central and eastern Asia from eastern Tibet across northern Chi ...
'', another Chinese peony species, it is used as an herbal remedy in
traditional Chinese medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of acti ...
.
Features
''Paeonia rockii'' is known for the obvious black, purple, and brown-red spots at the base of petals. Its main features are:
* Tall plant, can reach high, crown width .
* Big and bright flower, the diameter can reach .
* Strong fragrance; the smell of one open flower can dominate that of ten other open flowers from another peony.
* Resistance to drought and frost; tolerance of salt and base. Can bear temperatures as low as ; can still grow normally at pH above 7.
Rockii hybrids
Tree peony
hybrids with ''Paeonia rockii'' as one parent are called Rockii hybrids. In China there are several
cultivar groups of these hybrids, called Gansu Mudan and Zhongyuan Mudan, or North-West Chinese cultivar group. The European-grown Suffruticosa Group (
''Paeonia'' × ''suffruticosa'') also belongs here.
File:Paeonia rockii bud 2015 G1.jpg, Bud
File:Paeonia rockii 2013 G1.jpg, Fruit
References
External links
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2671785
rockii
Garden plants
Medicinal plants
Endemic flora of China