accepted name (2005):

Paeonia jishanensis Hong Zhao: (Hong& Pan 1999)

1920

Rehder in Journal of the Arnold Arboretum vol. 1 p. 193-194:

Paeonia suffruticosa var. spontanea, var. nov. — Paeonia suffruticosa Rehder & Wilson, in Sargent, Pl. Wilson. I. 319 (1913).

A typo recedit foliolis ovatis vel late ovatis inciso-dentatis vel trifidis, basi rotundatis vel late cuneatis, 3-7 cm. longis, subtus ad nervos praesertim basin versus pilosis, floribus 10-12 cm. diam. roseis, petalis circiter 10, interdum stamenibus petaloideis praeditis.

China: Shensi: 50 li west of Yunan Fu, 1910, W. Purdom (No. 838); Tai-pei-shan, 1910, W. Purdom (sterile).

The wild form differs from the cultivated garden forms chiefly in the broader and smaller leaflets rounded or broadly cuneate at the base and pilose on the nerves beneath, particularly toward the base of the leaflets. It also produces suckers freely, while the cultivated forms do not sucker. From the nomenclatorial type of the species which is P. suffruticosa var. rosea Bailey it further differs in the smaller flowers with fewer petals, but a plant of the wild form introduced by Purdom into cultivation which has flowered in the garden of Professor C. S. Sargent had larger flowers and more petals than the wild specimens. The disk is very high and envelops the carpels entirely up to the stigmas.

Stern (1946):

Paeonia suffruticosa var. spontanea sect. MOUTAN subsect. vaginatae suffruticosa GROUP

2. P.suffruticosa Andrews var. spontanea Rehder in Journ. Am. Arb. 1, 193 (1920), et Man. Cult. Trees and Shrubs, 215 (1927) ; F. C. Stern in Journ. Roy. Hort. Soc. 68, 124 (1943).Syn. P.suffruticosa Andrews sec. Rehder & Wilson in Sargent, Plant. Wilson. 1,319 (1913).

Description. A shrub. Stems glabrous. Leaves bipinnate, up to 13-5 cm. long ; lateral leaflets sub-sessile or sessile, sub-orbicular in outline, rounded at base, tridentate at the apex, teeth blunt, about 2-5 cm. long and little less in width ; terminal leaflet more or less deeply and unequally trilobed, sinus rounded, lobes entire or 2-3 dentate, 3 •5-4 cm. long, 4-5-5 cm. wide ; all leaflets dark green and glabrous above, glaucous and sparsely hairy below, the hairs denser at the base ; petiolules sparsely villose. Flower 11 cm. across. Petals numerous, broadly obovate, truncate and wavy at the apex, 5-6 cm. long, 5 cm. wide. Stamens about 2 cm. long, filaments i -3 cm. long, red (?), anthers yellow, pollen yellow. This description is based upon specimen No. 1909, R. P.Licent (K).

Distribution. china : Shensi, 50 km west of Yenan Fu, Purdom 338 (K) ; Shansi, Mountains near Yu-Hiang Hien, Licent igog (K).

W. Purdom found this apparently wild tree paeony in 1910 when he was collecting in the province of Shensi. It differs from P.suffruticosa by its lower stature, by the smaller leaflets which are more or less unequally trilobed with the sinus rounded and the apex of the teeth blunt and the flowers smaller. I have only seen dried specimens of this plant. It is in cultivation at the Arnold Arboretum at Boston, U.S.A. I accept Rehder's view that it can be regarded as only a variety of P.suffruticosa.

Fang (1959):

Paeonia suffruticosa Andrews var. spontanea Rehder in Journ. Arn. Arb., I. 193 (1920); Man. Cult. Trees & Shrubs, 1st Ed., I. 215 (1927), 2nd Ed., 5th Print. 205 (1951).— F. C. Stern in Journ. Roy. Hort. Soc., LXVIII. 124 (1943); Stud. Gen. Paeonia, 43 (1946).

Shensi –-- This spontaneous variety is a dwarf shrub with suborbicular leaflets which are only unequally trilobed with usually rounded sinuses. It has been found only in Shansi and northern Shensi. Hsia's specimen is very typical for this variety.

Haw and Lauener (1990):

P. suffruticosa Andr. subsp. spontanea (Rehder) S. G. Haw & L. A. Lauener, stat. nov. ....Syn.: P. suffruticosa Andr. var. spontanea Rehder, J. Am. Arb. 1: 193 (1920); Stern, Stud, Gen. Paeonia 43 (1946); K. Y. Pan, Fl. Reip. Pop. Sin. 27:45 (1979).

Hong & Osti (1992):

Paeonia spontanea (Rehder) T. Hong et W. Z. Zhao, stat. nov.Syn.: P. suffruticosa Andr. var. spontanea Rehder in J. Am. Arb. 1:193. 1920; Stern, Stud. Gen. Paeonia 43. 1946; K. Y. Pan, Fl. Reip. Pop. Sin. 27:45.1979

Wang (1998):

Paeonia spontanea (Rehder) T.Hong and W. Z. Zhao in Bull. of Bot. Res. 14(3): 238, 1994.

— P. suffruticosa Andr. var. spontanea Rehder

— P. suffruticosa Andr. ssp. spontanea (Rehder) S.G.Haw and L.A. Lauener

— P. jishanensis T. Hong and W.Z. Zhao.

Hong, D.-Y. & Pan, K.-Y. 1999.

A revision of the Paeonia suffruticosa complex (Paeoniaceae). -Nordic Journal of Botany 19: 289-299. Copenhagen. ISSN 0107-055X.

2. Paeonia jishanensis T. Hong et W. Z. Zhao

Bull. Bot. Res. 12(3): 225. Fig. 2. 1992. - Type: China, Shanxi, Jishan, Xiqiu, alt. 1200 m. 1991,05,10. Hong, T.915010(CAF,n.v.)

P. spontanea (Rehder) T. Hong et W. Z. Zhao Bull. Bot. Res. 14(3): 238, 1994.

P. suffructicosa ssp. spontanea (Rehder) S. G. Haw & L. A. Lauener in Edinb. J. Bot. 47(3): 278. 1990.

P. suffruticosa var. spontanea Rehder in J. Arn. Arb. l. 193. 1920, p.p., excl. specim. Tai-pei-shan (Mt. Taibai), Purdom s.n.(syntype of var. spontanea. A!); Stern, Stud. Gen. Paeonia, 43. 1946; K. Y. Pan, Fl. Reip. Pop. Sin. 27: 45. 1979. - Type (lectotype): China, Shaanxi, "50 li W. of Yenanfu" [Yan'an!], 1910, Purdom 338 (here designated A! isolectotypes E, K).

The group has been treated at three different levels, as variety by Rehder (1920), Stern (1946), Anonymous (1972) and Pan (1979), as subspecies by Haw & Lauener (1990) and as independent species by Hong, T. & Zhao (1994). The major differences between "suffruticosa" and "spontanea" are leaflet shape (particularly lateral ones), leaflet division and leaf indumentum in addition to whether there exist plantlets from root turions (spontanea) or not (suffruticosa).

The entity is scatteredly found in the Zhongtiao Mountains (Yongji County in Shanxi and Jiyuan County in Henan), the Luliang Mountains (Jishan County, Shanxi), the Huashan Mountains (Huayin County, Shaanxi), and Tongchuan and Yan'an both in Shaanxi (Fig. 7). All these populations except the one in Yan'an grow in thickets or in secondary deciduous forests at altitudes from 900 to 1700 m. The population in Yan'an consists of several individuals at the western side of the peony garden behind Zhaojun Temple in Wanhua Shan, and may well be introduced and naturalized there. Because the garden has been established probably for hundreds of years, and no one (including local people) knows its exact history, it is hard to give a definite answer about the history of P. jishanensis in Yan'an. All the populations mentioned above have purely white petals which are occasionally pinkish at the periphery (Plate 4).

Specimens examined. Henan: Jiyuan, 1050 m alt. 1997,04,26 Wang. S. Y. H97001 (PE, MO); Huadong-shu Forest Farm, 1200 m alt., 1994,05,22, Wang, S.Y. and Zhang, Y.J. 940220 (PE).

Shaanxi, Yan'an, Wanhua Shan, 36.6N, 109.4E, near the peony garden, 1997,05,09, Hong, D. Y. and Feng Y. X. H97066 (PE); eodem loc., Hsia, W. Y. 3519 (PE); Shaanxi-Gansu Basin, Le, T. Y. s. n. (PE).

Shanxi, no precise locality, 1390 m alt 1916,06.16, P. Licent 1909 (PE); Jishan: Xishe, 1550 m alt. 1989,05, Qiu, J. Z. PB89201 (PE); eodem loc. 1440 m alt. Qiu, J. Z. PB89501 (PE) ; Majiagou Village, 35.7N, 110.9 E. 1400 m alt. 1996,05,14, Zhou, S. L. H96053 (PE, A, K, MO, S); Majiagou Forest Farm, Chayuangou, 1450 m alt. 1982,05,14, Liu T. W. and Zeng Z. F. 165 (PE); eodem loc. Pei, Y. L. 9002 (PE); eodem loc., Pei, Y. L. and Hong, D. Y. 93003 (PE), 93006 (PE), 93008 (PE), 93009 (PE); Yongji, Shuiyukou Village, Pei, Y. L. 9170 (PE), 9180 (PE). 9201(PE); eodem loc., Pei, Y. L. and Hong, D. Y. 93011 (PE), 93427 (PE).

1999

HONG De-Yuan & PAN Kai-Yu Taxonomical history and revision of Paeonia sect. Moutan (Paeoniaceae) Acta Phytotaxonomica Sinica 37(4):351-368(1999) Paeonia jishanensis T. Hong et W. Z. Zhao

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