Since the founding of New China, Luoyang Municipal People's Government has attached great importance to the restoration and development of peony, and has successively established various peony production and operation institutions and peony cultivation bases, organized garden technicians to collect lost varieties, expand propagation, improve cultivation techniques, carry out new variety cultivation, high grafting propagation, cutting propagation, potted plant and bonsai production, promote cultivation and inhibit (postpone) cultivation techniques, and won international, national, provincial and ministerial scientific research projects1 There are 462 varieties of Luo Peony. The planting area is about 140 hectare, with about 2 million plants. 1982, the Standing Committee of Luoyang Municipal People's Congress passed a resolution to officially name peony as the "city flower" of Luoyang, and decided to hold the Luoyang Peony Flower Festival from April 15 to 25 every year. The policy of "making friends with flowers, developing economy and revitalizing Luoyang" has been well implemented. Luoyang peony is also famous in the world. With the pace of the times, Luoyang peony has crossed the ocean and entered more than 20 countries and regions, becoming a link and bridge connecting the friendship of people in famous countries. Peony Culture Peony is an inherent specialty flower in China, with thousands of years of natural growth and more than 2,000 years of artificial cultivation history. Its flowers are large, beautiful, colorful and fragrant, which have been praised by people of all ages and have high ornamental and medicinal value. Since the Qin and Han Dynasties, Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica has been scattered in various ancient books with medicinal plants as the carrier. Peony culturology has been formed, including botany, horticulture, pharmacology, geography, literature, art, folklore and other disciplines. It is a part of China culture and folk custom, and a cell of China culture as a whole. Through it, we can gain insight into the overall characteristics of China culture, which is the phenomenon of "cultural holography". In the Sui Dynasty, Emperor Yang Di (AD 605-6 18), "200 miles of land was divided into Xiyuan ... and all the animals and plants in the world were sent to the capital (now Luoyang, Henan). Yizhou (now Yixian County, Hebei Province) entered 20 boxes of peony. " Sui's Su Zhiwen said, "Peony blooms at five o'clock in Qingming Festival. "This is enough to show that peony is a bigger ornamental plant.
Peony cultivation began in the Tang Dynasty (AD 6 18-907). Kaiyuan flourishing age is in Chang 'an. Legend has it that there was a man named Song Shanfu who was good at growing flowers. At the call of Li Longji, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, he went to Lishan to plant more than 10,000 plants of different colors (Longcheng Record). Li Bai's "clouds want clothes and flowers, and spring breeze blows the threshold." If it weren't for the head of Yushan Mountain, I would meet Yaotai under the moon. "There are three songs, such as Qing Ping Diao, about peonies of different colors." The peony demon in front of the court failed, and the lotus flowers in the pool were quiet and affectionate. Only peony is the real national color, and capital moves when flowers bloom. "(Liu Yuxi:" Appreciating Peony ")" The imperial city is dying in spring, and it is noisy for a while; When peonies share, they buy flowers from each other. The price is uncertain, and the reward depends on the number of flowers: burning a hundred red flowers and stepping on the beam. ..... everyone is used to it, and everyone is obsessed. ..... "(Bai Juyi:" Buy Flowers ") From these poems, we can see the grand occasion of digging peony in Chang 'an, the imperial capital at that time. At this time, peony not only has many kinds of colors, but also has some novel changes and double petals. "There is a peony nest in Xingtang Temple, and Yuanhe has 1,200 flowers. Their colors are positive halo, inverted halo, light red, light purple, purple white, white sandalwood and so on. There are those without crimson, those without hearts inside and outside the leaves, and those with heavy flowers with seven or eight inches painted faces. "("Youyang Miscellany ")" Chiba peony is planted in front of the Mu Zongdi Temple, and the flowers are blooming, and Chiba is big and red. " (Du Yang Za). This also shows that as early as the ninth century, China already had double-petalled peony.
In Song Dynasty (AD 960- 1279), China Peony Cultivation Center moved from Chang 'an in Tang Dynasty to Luoyang, with more varieties of peony and more systematic cultivation techniques. A number of theoretical monographs appeared, which greatly promoted the study of peony. The works of this period include "Luoyang Peony" by Ouyang Xiu; Zhou's Peony in Yinjiang Luoyang and Flowers and Trees in Luoyang; Max Zhang's "Luoyang Flower Spectrum" and so on. This paper introduces the cultivation and management of peony, and summarizes a set of mature experiences. Ouyang Xiu said: Generally speaking, Luo people have flowers in their homes, but it is difficult to cover them without big trees.
At the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, with the constant war, Luoyang Peony began to decline, and Chen Zhou Peony took its place. Zhang Bangji wrote "The Story of Peony in Chen Zhou": "Luoyang peony is found in the flower spectrum, not as rich as Chen Zhou peony. Round household flowers are like millet, measured in hectares. "
In the Southern Song Dynasty, the peony cultivation center moved south, from Luoyang in the north to Tian Peng (now Pengzhou, Sichuan), Chengdu and Hangzhou in the south. The peony cultivated by cutting in Tian Peng ranks first in Sichuan and is known as "Little Xijing". Lu You, a poet, was an official in Shu, and went to enjoy the tour in person, and wrote "The Peony Tree of Tian Peng" (1 178). After the Southern Crossing in Song Dynasty, the flowering period of Luoyang declined, but Hangzhou developed, and some novel varieties appeared, such as' Jiuxin Lilac Peony' and' Baihua Qingyuan Peony'.
The Yuan Dynasty was the low tide period of peony development in China. There are only a handful of good varieties that can be seen in Chang 'an and Luoyang, and the varieties are degraded. It is rare to see a double-petal variety, because there is "Chiba alone, thousands of people are still British, and thousands of people are outstanding, especially in a hundred years" (Yao Sui's Preface to Peony)!
In the Ming Dynasty (A.D. 1368- 1644), the peony cultivation center moved to Bozhou, Anhui. Xia's "Bozhou Peony Theory" said: "My Bozhou peony has been immersed in the year, and its beauty has changed three times, especially between Ji and Meng. On top of this, there are Tianxiangyipin, Pomegranate Red, Shengjiaorong, Gong Hong Robe, Glass Pearl, New Red, and miscellaneous red is the last, with rare varieties. There is also a kind of rhubarb, which is light and greasy and lovely. The top of the Buddha is green and white first. Generally, safflower is mainly composed of bonus, silver red and peach red. " Another cloud said, "The number of martial arts steps in the thatched cottage is biased. Rate is a cluster of red and white colors, which are different and intertwined. In the meantime, flat purple is used to celebrate the fragrance. First, insert the three colors of spring and red in its flowers and make an article. " When he is in full bloom, it will be brilliant. "This time, it is the first time that Chinese flower arrangement technology.
Peony as an ornamental plant began in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and there are many records in the literature. Liu Saike's Jia Ji said: "There are peony paintings in the Northern Qi Dynasty". Now that the peony has been painted, there is no doubt that it is the object of viewing. Xie pointed to the specific situation of planting and said, "There are many peonies in Yongjia's bamboo." (Taiping Yu Lan) Darwin, a pioneer of modern biology, wrote in his book Variation of Animals and Plants in China in the 1970s that peony has been cultivated in China for 1400 years "from the 1970s to 1400 years ago, that is, the fifth century, that is, the early years of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, which is roughly the same as the planting history of peony in China. After liberation, peony cultivation has made great progress, peony culture has been paid more and more attention, and a large number of peony researchers and experts have appeared. Peony culture is compatible with many sciences and has a very wide composition, including philosophy, religion, literature, art, education, customs, people's feelings and other cultural fields. The cultural information provided by peony culture can reflect the basic picture of national culture and conform to the "holographic law" of the universe. Peony culture is a part of national culture. Compared with other cultures, peony culture has the following characteristics: (1) has strong biological characteristics.
(2) Strong pharmacological characteristics
(3) Strong horticultural characteristics
(D) Strong aesthetic characteristics
(E) Strong literary characteristics
(6) Strong local flavor
(7) A strong sense of wealth
(8) Strong aftertaste of life
(9) Strong life courage
(10) has the characteristics of strong tourist atmosphere. Yang Di Yang Guang (640) ascended the throne, made Luoyang his capital and built Xiyuan. Yang Di was curious about flowers and strange stones. He had searched for Jiangnan three times. And sent people to plant peony collected from all over the country in Xiyuan. According to Wang Yinglin's Haidi Mountain, "Emperor Yangdi allocated 200 West Gardens to bring flowers into the world. Yizhou bought 20 boxes of peonies, including Honghong, Feilaihong, Yuan Jiahong, Zui Hong Yan, Yun Hong, Tianwaihong, Yihuang, Yan 'an Yellow, Xianchunhong and Sese Feng. "In the royal garden, a large number of peonies were planted, which shows that Emperor Yang Di's preference for peonies.
Yang Guifei is especially good at peony. In the first year of the Tang Dynasty, people began to pay attention to peony in the court, and planted several kinds of red purple, light red and Bai Mudan in front of Chenxiang Temple in the east of Dongchi in Xingqing and beside Lishan Palace. At the beginning of the flower, Yang Guifei took the ladies-in-waiting to visit the flower viewing room, and she was intoxicated. It is recorded in Kaiyuan Flower Book: "Yang Guozhong got several peony (peony) plants as special pets and planted them at home." Here, the word "special pet" expresses Yang Guifei's love for peony.
Wu Zetian is the only female emperor in the history of China and a famous politician in the Tang Dynasty. People from Wenshui County, Bingzhou. There is a legend in history that Wu Zetian demoted peony to Luoyang, describing Wu Zetian as a tyrant. In fact, she is a very emotional person, especially good at peony. According to Shu's "Peony Fu", "In the hometown of weather, there are peonies under Xihe and Yazhi House, and their flowers are absolutely beautiful. Tianhou (Zetian) Garden is lacking and transplanted due to life. " This shows that the peony in Wu Zetian's hometown has a long history, and its variety is "unique", which has surpassed many varieties in Beijing. As a result, all the rare varieties in her hometown moved to the capital.
Later, Wu Zetian established the God Capital of Wu Zhou in Luoyang, and it was reasonable to bring some peonies from Chang 'an to Luoyang.
Legend has it that peony, also known as "burnt peony", is related to Wu Zetian. When it was freezing in the Tang Dynasty, Wu Zetian went to the back garden to play, only to find that it was freezing, the carved flowers withered and everything was depressed. She was very annoyed: if all the flowers bloomed overnight, how wonderful it would be! With the power of Wu Zetian, how dare I disobey my purpose! Thinking of this, she gave Baihua an imperial edict, saying, "Swim to the garden in the Ming Dynasty and report the knowledge of spring quickly. Flowers must be released overnight, don't wait for the morning breeze! " .
When Wu Zetian's imperial edict came out, Baihua Fairy panicked and got together to discuss countermeasures. Someone said, "In this cold winter, we shouldn't blossom. How can we do that? Some people say, "How can Hou's imperial edict be violated? Otherwise, it will definitely come to a tragic end; " Hua Xian was silent, and they all witnessed Wu Zetian's behavior of "those who obey me prosper, those who oppose me die". What shall we do? The next day, a heavy snow fell from the sky. Although the wind roared and dripping water turned into ice, Hua Xian still dared not disobey orders. I saw in the backyard that colorful flowers really braved the snow and opened. Wu Zetian was very happy to see this scene. Suddenly, a desolate flower bed came into view, and Wu Zetian's face suddenly sank. "What is this flower? How dare you violate my imperial edict? "You see, the original is full of peony flowers. Wu Zetian was furious after hearing this: "Immediately expel these bold peonies from Beijing and demote them to Luoyang. "Who knows, these peonies in Luoyang, casually buried in the ground, will soon grow green leaves, beautiful flowers. Wu Zetian was furious and immediately sent someone to Luoyang to burn all the peony flowers. The relentless fire dyed the sky red, and the peony struggled and groaned painfully in the fire. However, people were surprised to find that although the branches of peony were blackened, the blooming flowers were even more dazzling. In this way, the peony flower won the title of "burnt peony", and the fairy peony was praised as "the king of flowers" by Huaxian because of its awe-inspiring righteousness. Since then, peony has taken root and blossomed in Luoyang, becoming famous all over the world.
Zhou was born in Yinzhou (now Yinxian County, Zhejiang Province). Huang Jinshi officials transferred the judge to Jinghu South Road. Passing through Luoyang on Wednesday, JaeHee would rather "enjoy the peony in a fine garden". Yuan Feng came to Luoyang for four years and read Li Deyu's Flowers and Trees in Pingquan, Ouyang Xiu's Peony in Luoyang and Fan Zhongyan's Flower Spectrum. According to these written records, he searched for different flowers everywhere in Luoyang, and Yuan Feng wrote peony in Luoyang in February of five years.
Ouyang Xiu and Peony Ouyang Xiu, whose real names are Yongshu, are alcoholics, and later named Liu Yiju and Luling (now Ji 'an City, Jiangxi Province). He is good at prose and poetry and is known as one of the eight masters in Tang and Song Dynasties. When he was an official in Luoyang, he found that "the custom in Luoyang is as good as flowers." In spring, there are flower arrangements in the city. When the flowers bloom, scholars compete for a tour. " At this time, peony was planted all over the world, whether in people's homes or official palaces. Ou Gong was greatly moved, so he visited the people all over the world and made a detailed investigation on the history, cultivation, varieties, customs and people's feelings of Luoyang Peony. This is the first peony monograph in China.
Lu You was born in Yinshan, Yuezhou (now Shaoxing). An outstanding poet, historian, calligrapher, patriotic general and national hero in Song Dynasty. He met the local people in Pengxian Mountain, Sichuan, and said, "Peony is in Zhongzhou, Luoyang is the first, and Shuzhong is the first. The flowers in Tian Peng are unknown. " There are nearly a hundred kinds of flowers. Later, he wrote a Book of Peony in Tian Peng.
Liu Yuxi, a native of Luoyang, was born in Zhongshan (Dingxian County, Hebei Province). He used to be the prince of Luoyang, that is, the guest of Liu Bin. A great poet in the Tang Dynasty. Among his many poems, there are many people who praise peony, among which "Appreciating Peony" is famous all over the world: the peony demon in front of the court is unqualified, and the pond is clear and affectionate. Only when peony is really a national color will the capital move in the flowering season. Bian Shi and Peony, also known as Ji Zhi, are from Suzhou, Shaanxi. Song dynasty officials, once dabbled in politics. Being an honest official won the hearts of the people. At the end of the Song Dynasty, Yuan people invaded and the Southern Song Dynasty was defeated, so they retreated to Gusu City. Later, in order to avoid chaos, the whole family moved to dongpu town, Yancheng (now Biancang Town) and planted two peonies at home. This is now the "dead peony".
According to "Yancheng County Records" and "Bian Shi Genealogy" records: "Why did the ancestor choose the meaning of two-color peony, but planted flowers to show loyalty to the country, and chose Bai Mudan to show incorruptibility as an official?" Song single father and Peony Song single father, the word Zhongru, Luoyang people in the early Tang Dynasty, famous peony growers, tasted thousands of kinds of peony, and fought with red and white. He was called to Lishan by the emperor and planted 10,000 peony plants of different varieties. The emperor gave 1200 gold. Everyone in the court called him a gardener.
Empress Dowager Cixi of the Qing Dynasty, influenced by national traditional culture since childhood, liked peony very much. Many peonies are planted in the Royal Garden and other gardens in the Forbidden City. When she was "listening to politics", she once designated peony as the national flower.
Charles Darwin, a British naturalist and evolutionist, made a serious study on the evolution of peony in China (from wild to domestic), and in his masterpiece The Origin of Species, he wrote an example of China's artificial cultivation of peony as an argument for his biological evolution theory.