Peonies: The Imperial Flower - Softcover

Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1841880817 ISBN 13: 9781841880815

Publisher: Seven Dials, 2000

Synopsis

The ultimate study of the peony: a celebration of its place in art and in history as well as a practical guide to its cultivation.

About this title

Review:

Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall's Peonies is a ravishing book--the sort of book that you covet from the moment you see it--but it isn't just lovely to look at, it is also a wonderful read. It tells the long and fascinating history of this most beautiful of flowers, tracing its origins in the wild to its cultivation in the Imperial gardens of China and Japan and its journey to the West. The characters encountered along the way include an empress who arranged for the planting of many thousands of tree peonies, yet murdered her baby daughter and in her 70s took two brothers half her age as lovers, and a French missionary who spent most of his life in China collecting over 1,500 species of peony, most of which were sent back to France. As befits its subject, the book is lavishly illustrated with paintings and photographs that are both informative and appealing.

But this is not just a wonderful story well told. It is also a serious work of reference giving comprehensive information on peony varieties, how to grow them, where to find them, and where to see them. It's written with the international reader in mind, so references include information relevant to the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand as well as Great Britain and Europe. --Stephanie Donaldson

From the Publisher:

With their dramatically showy flowers, peonies are among the most sumptuous blooms in the garden. These lush perennials work their enchantment every day of the year in this gorgeous-and practical-full-color gardening book. Award-winning garden designer Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall provides advice on planting 200 varieties of peonies; extensive lists detailing size, flower shape, and color of both tree and herbaceous peonies; garden plans; and a Top Ten list selecting peonies for fragrance, cut flowers, autumn color, early, late, and long flowering, robustness, and much more. With stunning illustrations and information on peon ies' history around the world, their depiction in fine and decorative art, and their use in 20th-century gardens created by Gertrude Jekyll, William Robinson, and other notable designers, Peonies will delight gardeners everywhere. 200 photographs in full color 733/8 x 933/4" Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall's garden designs have won awards at England's renowned Chelsea Flower Show. Author of several garden -ing books, she lives in Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire, England.

About this edition

• Publisher: Seven Dials
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 1841880817
• ISBN 13: 9781841880815
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 384