Paeonia mascula - Wild peony - (Paeoniaceae)

Paeonia mascula

Wild peonys are becoming increasingly rare due to so many of them being dug up and transplanted into gardens, but a long hike up into the hills behind the beaches of the Algarve in Portugal yeilded pictures of this fine specimen. At one time peonies were grown for rather dubious medical purposes but nowadays they are mainly grown for decoration. The flowers are beautiful but shortlived, which makes them most unsatisfactory as cut flowers.

Wild Peony in Italy

The Wild peony is a member of the Peony family (Paeoniaceae) and is present in the western and Central Mediterranean from France to Greece, although not in the Aegean Islands or Crete. Crete has its own endemic wild peony - Paeonia clusii.

Closeup of Peony flower

The specimens on this page were photographed in the Algarve in May (top), and in the Gargano Peninsula area of Italy in April (centre and bottom).