Posted ByChina7dayChina is a vast country with many kinds of flowers and plants. There are about 30000 kinds of flowers in the world, and there are 10000-20000 kinds of flowers originated in China. Among many flowers, peony is not noticeable at first. The word “Peony” was first used in medical slips for the treatment of “blood stasis disease” [2] 17. It is not mentioned in the book of songs, which has abundant plant data. After that, for a long time, peony appeared more in medical books, which had nothing to do with flower appreciation. It was not until the Eastern Jin Dynasty that peonies began to be painted. In the Tang Dynasty, due to Empress Wu Zetian’s love for peony, the Wild Peony, which used to be mainly used for medicinal purposes, entered the palace forbidden area and became an ornamental plant, thus “the peony in Beijing is thriving”. Changan peony has become a king, but this status has not been widely recognized. In addition, at the end of the Tang Dynasty, due to social unrest, Chang’an, the capital, was destroyed by the war, and the peony culture also declined.
In the Northern Song Dynasty, Luoyang peony was named “the first in the world”, which has been mentioned many times in the literati poems, such as “Luoyang peony is the most in the world” [3] 5 “ancient peony only uses medicine to see the grass, and now Luoyang peony is the first in the world” Volume 7 “Peony family Zhongzhou, especially xiyiluo” volume 30 “the world’s flower king is Luojing, cold food in the Qingming Dynasty is fragrant” Volume 3. There are two reasons why Luoyang Peony became the first in China in the Northern Song Dynasty. From the perspective of natural environment, Luoyang people in the Northern Song Dynasty believed that “Luoyang was a good place in the ancient Sanhejian. In the past, Duke Zhou tested the sunrise with its size, and knew that it was good and obedient to the wind and rain in the cold and summer, which covered the heaven and earth. There are many plants in the world, so they are different from others. In the spring of 2003, Luoyang Bureau of Geology and mineral resources and Henan Geological Survey Institute collected a large number of soil and water samples in the field of Yiluo River (Luoyang City), and analyzed the content of 54 chemical elements. The results showed that the contents of Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, B, Mo, V, Co, Ni and other microelements were higher in the soil of peony planting area, especially the contents of Mn, Cu, Zn, mo were significantly higher than those of other areas, in which the content of available Mn was extremely rich. The above elements can effectively promote the growth of plant cells, the synthesis of chlorophyll, sugars, enzymes and the formation of flower buds [7]. Coupled with the suitable climate environment, Luoyang has become a “Fengshui treasure land” suitable for peony growth. At that time, Ouyang Xiu didn’t agree with people’s view. He believed that Luoyang Peony flourished more because of human factors. He asked: “Luoyang city is tens of miles around, and the flowers of the counties can’t reach the city, but can’t be planted outside?” [1] Volume 22 Ouyang Xiu mentioned here that the important reason for the prosperity of peony culture is the human environment. Luoyang city is home to many officials and rich people, and its private gardens are full of skilled gardeners, so the peony in the city is far superior to the surrounding counties. Sima Guang, who has lived in Luoyang for a long time, once praised Luoyang’s Gardens: “Luoyang’s famous gardens are so unrivalled that the gates and alleys are connected like teeth.” [8] Volume 5 examines the cultural environment of Luoyang in the Northern Song Dynasty. It is not difficult to find that Luoyang, as the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, had good economic and cultural conditions and became the leisure place for the retired Beijing officials. Luoyang’s garden is flourishing with various festivals. In addition, Luoyang has a professional peony market and gardener. Therefore, Luoyang peony has both the natural and human factors of its development and becomes the top natural in China.
In the Northern Song Dynasty, Luoyang people especially loved peony, which made peony stand out from the crowd: “Luoyang also has yellow peony, Fei peach, Ruilian, Qianye Li, Hongyu Li and so on, all of which do not reduce the others, while Luoyang people do not cherish very much, which is called fruit flower, saying: a flower cloud, to the peony, it is not named, directly, it means the world’s true flower is the only peony, and its name is not called peony, Its love is so important. ” [1] Volume 22 at this time, the peony has the unique position in the flower, “there are many kinds of flowers in Luozhong, and the only name of the peony is” flower king “. All gardens are planted with peony” [9]. In the Northern Song Dynasty, Luoyang peony was “the first in the world”, and peony became “the first in flowers” in Luoyang.