2018 Southern Peony Visits Luoyang National Peony Garden 洛阳国家牡丹园 (South)

Gate of Luoyang National Peony Garden 洛阳国家牡丹园
This photo of the Luoyang National Peony Garden gate is actually the entrance to the North side of the garden. However I didn't have the opportunity to photograph it until we were just about to leave (after we finished touring the South side). When we first arrived, there were so many people and cars out front, plus a couple of monkeys waiting for tourists to hop out of their cabs! The monkeys were actually people dressed up that wanted to take pictures with you for money. You can see one of them in the photo in the red and yellow costume. (Click the photo to see a larger version.) If you missed our first article about the North side of the garden, you can read that here, 2018 Southern Peony Visits Luoyang National Peony Garden 洛阳国家牡丹园 (North). Below are a few photos of herbaceous peonies I happened upon that were not in a mass planting. They seemed to be growing in a bed of peonies that were all different (an unusual find in these large Chinese peony gardens).

Herbceous Peonies in Bloom at Luoyang National Peony Garden

Hot Pink with White Picotee Herbaceous Peony

Pale Pink/White with Yellow Anemone Herbaceous Peony

Medium Pink Single Herbaceous Peony

White Double Herbaceous Peony
Once it was time to see the other side of the garden (which I didn't even realize there was another side, since the North side was so big), we crossed this footbridge that connected the North side to the South side over a very busy road. The bridge was decorated with large flower flags in a rainbow of colors. Once we arrived on the South side, we were greeted with a large stone statue for the National Peony Gene Bank. I wish we had something like this in the US. I'm glad someone is funding it, though. I guess China is the best place for it since most peonies originated from there. It looks like China's National Peony Gene Bank had collected genes from 1,352 different peonies when they erected this statue, including 120 species from overseas. I wonder how many they have collected now...


Footbridge Connecting the North and South Gardens
of Luoyang National Peony Garden

National Peony Gene Bank Stone Statue
国家牡丹基因库
Inscription on National Peony Gene Bank Statue:

"Peony’s being considered as “the national beauty and heavenly fragrance”; is originated from a poem which reads “enchanted by the national beauty, we enjoy wine in the morning light unconsciously, till our clothes are permeated by the heavenly fragrance at night”. Peonies have bloom in the imperial garden to add ornament and splendor since Sui Dynasty. In Tang Dynasty, made the national flower for its symbolizing the good fortune and prosperity. Luoyang as the city of origin for primitive peonies has an over 1,600 years’ history of cultivating peonies. In Tang Dynasty, peony was also called Luoyang Flower.

There were many precious and rare cultivars in the history of cultivating peonies and the number of cultivars has once topped more than 2,000 in its golden age. However, due to the absence of special systems or institutions for germplasm conservation in the past, most of the cultivars were lost or extinct. To save and preserve endangered cultivars, the National Peony Gene Bank, which is responsible for the collection, cultivation and development of peony cultivars, was approved to establish by State Forestry Administration in 1992. At present the Bank has collected 1352 species, among which are 9 domestic primitive species, 2 wild subspecies, 1140 domestic cultivars, 120 rare species introduced from the overseas, 92 ne cultivars. Covering the genes of all the domestic peony populations and the main foreign populations, the Bank becomes the only state level peony base for biological body preservation, asexual propagation and research of peonies."

Peony Homeland
牡丹故土

Chinese Pavilion Pagoda
Once we explored the South side of the garden more, we found there were several commemorative stones and statues on this side. Perhaps the South side was the original garden, and the North side was the expansion. My father in law, Dake, is standing beneath the Chinese Pavilion Pagoda. This pagoda and pavilion are in the traditional Chinese style, and they led us to the entrance of the indoor peony garden on the South side. Just inside the door were these very beautiful and very fancy peony art glass panels depicting some yellow, orange/red, and white tree peonies. The panels were taller than us, quite a work of art!


Tree Peony Art Glass

Entrance to the Indoor Tree Peony Garden
Once we passed the art panels, we came to an entrance hall with a crooked path of hardwood flooring edged by a low cement brick wall and flanked on each side by faux grass gardens lined with potted tree peonies. Most of the tree peonies seemed to be popular varieties we had seen before. However one tree peony in particular caught my eye because of its unusual coloring - a bright orange! When I came to see it for a closer look, I was surprised to see that there was another bud right beside it in a different color - white! I could hardly believe my eyes. There appeared to be two different colored peony blossoms growing from the exact same stem! Amazing!!


Two Different Colored Blooms (Orange and White)
Growing on One Peony Plant

Indoor Peony Garden Hall
Inside the main room of the indoor Chinese tree peony garden, there were several pagodas and a central hall, all with golden yellow roofs. Stone seemed to be the theme in this room. There was stone tiled flooring, white marble fencing with intricate peony carvings on each panel, and jagged, dark gray garden stones scattered around the perimeter of the room behind the faux grass tree peony gardens. There was also an indoor water feature, with smoother, pointy large stones in the water and around the edges. A natrual wooden Chinese style bridge crossed over the water feature, as did one of the pagodas. The potted tree peonies in this room were all nice, large specimens loaded with blooms in pinks, whites, and lavenders.


White Chinese Tree Peony

Lavender Chinese Tree Peony

Pink Chinese Tree Peony

Indoor Chinese Tree Peony Garden

Chinese Lady Portraits and Potted Tree Peonies
The last room of the building contained some portraits of Chinese women posing with peonies, perhaps peony festival queens from years past. There were also several potted tree peonies blooming along this wall. The last room also contained a few historical peony items encased in glass - ceramic peony plates, peony wine, peony soaps, and peony teas. The Chinese people really seem to love their peonies. They make everything out of it. While exploring the South side of the garden, we also came upon a mass planting of yellow tree peonies in full bloom, set against a backdrop of lovely fir trees. As you can see from the map of the Luoyang National Peony Garden below, the garden is quite large, and there is quite a lot to explore!


Mass Planting of Yellow Tree Peonies in Full Bloom

Map of Luoyang National Peony Garden 洛阳国家牡丹园

Peony Lady Statue
This peony lady statue we found in the South side of the Luoyang National Peony Garden, is the same style of peony lady statue seen in several peony gardens throughout China. Perhaps they are all by the same artist. I saw a similar one on my trip to the Shanghai Botanical Garden, 2013 Peonies in Beijing, Shanghai, and Suzhou China. This particular peony lady statue sat atop a platform in the middle of a small pond water feature. I love how her robes just flow in smooth arcs, like a meandering stream, and check out the detail of the peony she holds in her hand. She also wears a crown of peony flowers as well, so royal.


Millennium Queen of Peony
Not too far from the peony lady statue, we found the "Millennium Queen of Peony", which is what we call Paeonia ostii, and the Chinese call Dan Feng (丹凤). Tree Peony 'White Phoenix' is the most widely grown cultivar of this species here in the US. This particular clump of Dan Feng was not in bloom when we came to see it, but I'm sure it would have been gorgeous in full bloom. The mother plant here seemed to be very old and was probably over 8 feet tall and maybe wider. I am not surprised to hear about the strong roots of this peony and its adaptability to stress. The Tree Peony 'White Phonix' was just named a Southern Peony Best Performer this year, 2018 Tree Peony 'White Phoenix' Best Performer - Week 2. The "Millenium Queen of Peony" was grown in native brown dirt, which appeared to be thick with clay, and with no top dressing.


Millennium Queen of Peony Stone Marker
Inscription on Millennium Queen of Peony Marker:

"Danfeng peonies which have strong root system are the descendant communities of the old Yangshan peonies. They are many traditionally cultivated for medicinal use. The ?ampeo slips of Han Dynasty unearthed from Wuwei tomb Gansu province are the demonstration the peonies for medicinal use could be dated back to 1,900 years ago, Millennium Queen of peony is a cultivar of Danfeng peonies which are featured for extensive adaptability, strong growth potential and good stress resistance. Years of cultivation has formed splendid and unique Dangfeng peony clumps, which are the largest Dangfeng"

Sui and Tang Millennium Peony King
瀚唐千年牡丹王

2018 Southern Peony Visits Luoyang National Peony Garden 洛阳国家牡丹园 (North)

My family and I visited China during their (and our) peony bloom season. The APS Convention was directly after our bloom season. So now I am catching my breath a little and starting to bring you some photos and stories from my trip to see the Chinese peonies in the peony capital of the world - Luoyang, China. I hope you enjoy them! :-)


Sidewalk Peony Vendors
Luoyang National Peony Garden 洛阳国家牡丹园

Potted Chinese Tree Peony in Bloom for Sale

Chinese Tree Peony in Luoyang National Peony Garden
Although we seemed to have missed the main season of the tree peony blooms at the Luoyang National Peony Garden, there were still a few last buds opening on some plants in the gardens and the herbaceous peonies were just starting to come into bloom. I was able to collect some nice pollen from several different tree peony varieties of all colors, lavender, pink, lavender-pink, pale pink, orange red, red, white, yellow. I even found a patch of tree peonies that they had hybridized. They were covered with white bags marked with a Chinese character, and paper-clipped shut.


Herbaceous Peony in Luoyang National Peony Garden

Chinese Tree Peony and Hoverfly

Yellow Chinese Tree Peony
This week seemed to be the season for the majority of the yellow tree peonies, which they had fields and fields of blooming very contently. It seems the Chinese love to propagate the same varieties in huge masses for a grandiose affect. There were two sides to the China National Flower garden, a North side and a South side. There was a pedestrian footbridge over a very busy road that allowed you to access from the North and South garden. The "small" Chinese city of Luoyang is inhabited by approximately 2 million people. So compared to where I'm from, it is about double the size of the triad (three city) area I live in.


Display of Peony Flower Arrangements in Decorative Vases

Dark Pink Peony in Blue Vase

White Tree Peony in Painted Vase

White Peony in Tall Vase

Dark Pink Peony in Flat Bowl Vase
Each side of the garden had an exhibtion hall, which contained air conditioned gardens that were set up in the Chinese gardening style, with pagoda style wooden buildings, small white fences, rocks, streams, bridges, and meandering paths. Inside the gardens were grassy areas (made of astro turf) with prebuilt indentions where large potted plants could be inserted and removed. It appeared that they would rotate potted tree peonies in and out of these indoor astro turf gardens as the peonies went in and out of bloom, so that there was always something blooming beautifully in these indoor gardens.


Indoor Gardens with Potted Tree Peonies

My Son and Me in the Indoor Peony Garden
There were also a few vendors selling potted tree peonies, potted herbaceous peonies, and peony seeds outside the garden. Of course inside the garden they were selling anything peony they could think of as well. On the inside they had sidewalk vendors selling everything from peony flower crowns, peony flower fascinators, peony paintings, 3-D peony prints, peony scarves, peony seed oil, peony candy, pastries filled with peony filling, and peony fans. I even saw a few peony T-shirts. We had to pick up a peony crown for my daughter, a peony scarf for myself, and some peony pastries and peony teas to bring back for relatives. The peony pastries are a special treat that is local to Luoyang, China.


Isabella with her Peony Crown

Chinese Peony Teas for Sale

Chinese Peony Pastries for Sale

2018 How to Take Awesome Photos of Peonies (or Any Other Flower)

So you want to know the secrets of how to take awesome photos of peony flowers? Well, they're not really secrets, but here goes... Here are my top 7 tips for taking awesome peony pics. The stuff on this list isn't really covert, classified information only for professionals, it's more like how to train your eye to look for the right things. Take a look at the two photos that are side by side below. Those are the exact same bloom, taken just moments apart. Want to learn more? Read on...
How to Take Awesome Photos of Peonies
1. Sun - Lighting is the number one factor in getting a great outdoor shot. You can use a flash, but often times, the final product will come out looking artificial and not quite right. The light from your camera's flash tends towards the blue end of white (cool light), whereas the sun tends towards the yellow side of white (warm light). The sun's warm white lighting makes your flower photos seem more natural, more welcoming, and much less artificial! Come out mid morning, mid day, and/or mid afternoon to catch the best sunlight with much fewer shadows. Early morning or late afternoon sun will cast far more shadows on your subject, and/or you may have inadequate lighting altogether, requiring a flash.


Peony 'Lemon Dream'
Photo Taken in Partial Shade
Peony 'Lemon Dream'
Photo Taken in Sun
2. Focus - The second most important factor in obtaining a great flower photo is focus. Focus, Focus, Focus - It's often repeated because it really is that important. If you find the most perfect flower in the whole world, but your camera is focused on the grass or mulch or flower foliage in the background, you might as well have not even taken the photo. You can focus your camera either manually or automatically if you have a DSLR camera or automatically if you have a point and shoot camera, but the key is to focus. Auto focus can work - as long as the subject is what's in focus. If you are using the auto focus feature, most cameras (either point and shoot or DSLR) will have something on the screen that alerts you as to what the camera is focusing on, right before the shot is taken (like a box around the subject in focus or some points that light up on the screen showing what parts of the shot are in focus). Many times if you press the shutter button only halfway down, you have the opportunity to focus (and refocus if it's incorrect) before you depress the shutter button fully to take the shot. Sometimes if you press the shutter all the way down too quickly, the camera is either not focused at all (resulting in a very blurry image) or focused on the wrong thing (resulting in the wrong thing being in focus and a blurry or slightly blurry subject).

3. Flower - Primp it! This may not be a flower exhibition, but if you're going to the trouble to take a nice photo, you want your flower to look its best. If you notice anything on the surface of your flower that will detract from the photo, remove it. There could be debris, dirt, grass, or whatever sitting on your nice flower. Don't leave it on the blossom. Blow it off or pick it off. There could also be ants, bees, worms, or whatever other type of creature on your flower. Unless you are taking a picture with the insects intentionally, then you need to either wait until they're gone or flick them off (if it's safe to do so). There nothing like having a beauty of a flower with a giant fly on one of the petals. Shoo those bugs away!

4. Background - Background is often forgotten when taking photos. Ever see a beautiful flower shot with a cinder block or landscape fabric or irrigation hose or bucket or shovel or (fill in the blank) in the background? (And you just can't help but think how much more beautiful the photo would be without said item in it.) Well, that's what background is all about. It sounds easy - just make sure the background is nice, but we are all guilty (myself included) of taking a photo with a less than stellar background. If you are taking outdoor flower photos, here's a tip to remember: Green is nice, hands and fingers (and arms!) are not. If you must prop a flower up in order to take its picture, please, please, please prop it up with something other than your hand (or arm), preferably something natural and something that does not show in the photo. Sometimes when photographing peonies, I will prop up the flower I want to photograph on another one of the peony's own stems. Sometimes the flowers are really uncooperative. So another option is to use a bamboo stick (or just any other stick from outside) to prop up the flower. Sticks are great because they can be broken and made to any custom length needed. They can also be easily hidden in the foliage. I usually try to make the stick a length that is just tall enough to support the bloom. One end of the stick rests on the ground, the other end rests just underneath the heavy bloom.

5. Angle - This one is a little more advanced, but worth it when you see the results you can create. Ever see a photographer step up on step stool to take a photograph? That step stool is all about the angle. Sometime adjusting your height or your position, relative to the subject, can make all the difference. The thing you are looking for in the angle may vary depending on your subject, but for flowers I am looking for the best symmetry (without sacrificing the Background - see #4). Find the best angle that creates the best symmetry. You many have to crouch down or stand overhead and aim your camera straight down. You may have to walk all around your subject until you find just the right spot to take the photo. Your flower may not be perfectly round, but if you change the angle enough, you may find a shot that makes it look pretty round. Or your flower may be shaped in more of an oval or oblong shape. Then the key is to try to balance the flower in the frame either horizontally or vertically.

6. Timing - This one is sometimes hard for me too (especially since I work 5 out of 7 days of the week), but when you can, try to Take your photos of the freshest flowers - first day blooms if possible. The first (or sometimes second) day flowers will be much more full of life than older flowers on the plant. Also some older blossoms tend to fade. You want to make sure that the flower you are photographing is full of water and not wilted. So this one kind of relates to #1 because you do need good sun for your flowers, but just be aware that some peonies will wilt faster as the day goes on (darker colors like reds, dark pinks, or dark purples). So make sure you try to photograph your darker colored blooms earlier in the day if possible. Also if your area has been especially dry and hot, then it might be a good idea to try to take all of your photographs in the morning to avoid wilted, tired looking peony blooms.

7. Multiples - Finally, take lots of photos! We're not on film anymore. So you can just about take as many photos as you'd like. Memory cards are pretty cheap nowadays. So upgrading to one that will hold more photos shouldn't be a problem. Take multiple shots of the same flower, and I don't mean like 3 or 4, I mean like 10. If you have a shot you really want to get right, take 10 of them. It's not like you have a person or animal for a subject, you have a flower. I don't think it's in a hurry to go anywhere. So you really do have the luxury (that you don't have with people or pets) to Take multiples of the exact same shot. Most of the time (over 50% of the time), when I review them later on my computer, my last shot is my best one. So take your time to get the perfect shot. The reason you're taking so many shots is not to publish all of them, it's to publish the best one. So make sure to take the time later to review and compare your multiple shots to find the best one.

I know this is a lot to remember, but the more you practice these things, the more like second nature they will become. You won't have to intentionally think about each of these things, they will kind of become programmed in. Even on a good day, it probably won't be possible to get every one of the things on this list right for every single shot (see #7 Multiples). Just remember, the most important thing is to have fun! And to share your love of peonies with the world!!!