Discover the National Flower of Romania: The Peony

Romania is located in southeastern Europe and shares a border with Hungary, Ukraine, Moldova, Bulgaria, and Serbia. Thanks to its astonishing variety in terms of geography and climate, Romania is home to many native plants growing wild. One of these is Romania’s national flower: the peony. Read on to discover more!

Geography and Climate of Romania

Romania has an area of 92,046 square miles, and its landscape consists mainly of rolling hills and mountains covered in lush forests. The Carpathian Mountains form the spine of Romania’s topography along its northern boundary, while the Danube River runs through its southern regions. Several lakes also dot Romania, including Lake Razelm near the Black Sea coast, which is known to be one of Europe’s most beautiful freshwater lakes. There are also several famous national parks, such as Retezat National Park, which contains unique alpine habitats in Central Europe. Overall, the climate of Romania is temperate and continental. However, the Black Sea in the eastern part of the country causes it to become marine on the coast.

The National Flower of Romania: The Peony

In 2015, the peony was declared the National Flower of Romania. On “Romanian Peony Day,” an annual festival held on May 15th, several peony species are showcased in gardens throughout the country. Furthermore, scientific conferences to discuss the biological and aesthetic traits of various kinds of peonies are held. Finally, artistic organizations host art shows to honor and commemorate the flower.

The Romanian government provides protected areas for the national flowers and supports programs to crossbreed species from other countries to help them survive in the local environment. Five types of peonies grow wild throughout Romania. Three other species have been cultivated into hundreds of new varieties. Peonies thrive in diverse climates and soils around the country, from mountains to fields.

What Is a Peony?

Paeonia is the only genus in the Paeoniaceae family, as classified by Friedrich K.L. Rudolphi in 1830. There are approximately 25 to 40 types of peonies, most of which are perennials that can reach up to 3 feet in height. Additionally, a few varieties of peonies are shrubs with woody stems that can reach heights of up to 11 feet. Peonies are known for their fragrant flowers and come in white, yellow, pink, purple, and red. They bloom for about a week and make excellent-cut flowers. Some varieties bloom in summer, and some in spring.

Where Do They Come From?

Peonies are native to Asia, Europe, and the Western side of North America. One species of tree Peony, called Moutan, grows only in China and Tibet.

Peony’s Symbolism in Romania

Peony is the national flower of Romania because, in Romanian culture and tradition, it stands for the strength of love, self-sacrifice, and bloodshed. As a result, the military selected this flower to signify appreciation and honor for veterans of war. Furthermore, because of the capital importance of peonies to Romanians, thousands of citizens and villages bear the name Bujor, meaning peony in Romanian.

Peony’s Name

According to one version of the myth, the peony received its name from the name of a Greek man named Paeon. The young man was a pupil of Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine and healing. One day, after a furious fight with Hercules, Pluto went to see Asclepius to be cured, as he had injured himself pretty heavily. However, he couldn’t find Asclepius. In pain, he asked his pupil Paeon to take care of the wound. Paeon cured Pluto with a milky liquid extracted from the root of a plant, and the god miraculously healed. This act made Asclepius so jealous that he killed Paeon. However, Zeus, the father of the gods, decided to honor Asclepius’s pupil by transforming him into the beautiful flower we know today as the “peony.”

Peony’s History

In China, the peony has been around in the imperial gardens since the 11th century BC. By the 8th century, it had spread to Japan, where they used its roots and seeds for medical treatments such as pain, headaches, and asthma. In addition, ancient Chinese refer to using peonies to enhance food dishes. Confucius, who lived between 551 and 479 BC, was said to have praised the taste of the peony by proclaiming that he ate sauce made from peonies on many dishes and loved the flavor.

The first decorative varieties first appeared in China in the 6th and 7th centuries. They were especially popular during the Tang dynasty in the imperial gardens. By the 10th century, peony cultivation had spread throughout China, and Luoyang had become the main center for their cultivation, a status that it still holds today. During the Qing dynasty, a second hub for peony growth sprouted up in the city of Cáozhōu, Japan. Both towns still celebrate peonies in annual festivals and have government-funded research centers dedicated to them.

Over the centuries, different varieties of peony have been created through natural and crossbreeding methods, particularly between Paeonia officinalis, grown in Europe since the 15th century (mainly for medicinal purposes), and Paeonia lactiflora, which arrived in Europe in the 19th century. In the 1940s, a Japanese horticulturist, Toichi Itoh, achieved success by crossbreeding tree peonies and herbaceous peonies, thus obtaining a new class of intersectional hybrids. Nowadays, you can commonly see these flowers in gardens due to their beauty and popularity.

The Netherlands is the world leader in producing peonies as cut flowers, generating an average of 50 million annually!

How to Grow Peonies

Peonies are hardy to USDA zones 3-8. They are long-lived and can remain in place for up to 100 years. They resent being disturbed or transplanted, so pick the location wisely. You usually purchase peonies as bare-root tubers in the fall. Plant them in a location that receives 8 hours of sunlight per day. They need to be sheltered from strong winds and do best at least four feet away from competition, like trees or shrubs. They need fertile, rich soil with a neutral ph. Plant them in the fall 6 weeks before the ground freezes for winter. Spring-planted peonies usually don’t do very well, so this is not a recommended practice.

Uses

Korea, China, and Japan use the root of Paeonia lactiflora (Bai Shao) in traditional medicine. In China, the petals are parboiled and sweetened as a tea-time treat. Peonies are edible, so feel free to add them to lemonade, salad, or fruit punch. Peonies are also grown as ornamental plants because of their large and often scented flowers. These qualities make them an increasingly popular choice for bridal bouquets due to their beauty, fragrance, and symbolism, traditionally thought to represent romance and love.

Benefits to Wildlife

Peonies’ fragrant flooms full of nectar make an excellent choice for pollinator gardens. Many gardeners are confused about why so many ants swarm around peony buds. Have no fear! These critters are feasting on the flower’s nectar in exchange for protecting it from pests. They are attracted to the sugary syrup outside the buds or the honeydew produced by scale insects and aphids. Avoid spraying the ants, as they are aiding in keeping your peonies healthy. Ants have an important function in helping peony flowers bloom. The buds secrete nectar that is desirable to ants, causing them to climb up and help open the buds so they can access the nectar inside. Even though peonies will bloom without the assistance of ants, they do help with the blooming process. Additionally, ants also deter damaging insects from attacking peonies.

Other Native Plants

Other native plants to Romania include trees like ash, beech, hazelnut, and oak. Many native shrubs grow throughout the country, such as juniper and mugwort. The most common wild grasses are fescue, cocksfoot, and brome. If you look closely, you can see sphagnum, hair cap mosses, and reindeer lichen growing on trees. Romania is also home to evergreen plants like ivy and boxwood and fruits like strawberries and blackberries. You can even see native herbs like yarrow, nettle, and chamomile. Many areas have oregano, basil, and peppermint growing in abundance.

Up Next:

• Blue, Yellow, and Red Flag: Romania Flag History, Symbolism, and Meaning
• Peonies vs. Carnations
• Dahlia vs. Peony

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