"The most exotic flower in the world" - Chaohu Yinping Mountain White Peony, has now become one of China's famous ornamental peonies. Every year during the Grain Rain season, the flowers bloom, attracting thousands of tourists to come and see them, and they are all amazed by their wonder. One wonder is the origin of peony. On the cliff, among the barren rocks, such a green and leafy peony suddenly appears, which is just out of reach; the second wonder is the age of the peony. If you take Ouyang Xiu's poem "Looking at Flowers in the Immortal Cave" of the Northern Song Dynasty as evidence, the silver screen peony has experienced thousands of years of vicissitudes. No one knows when he was born; the three wonders are the same for thousands of years. Although the screen peonies have withstood thousands of years of wind, frost, snow and rain, and the changes in the world, they have never withered or failed, nor have they spread out or branched; the four wonders are because of their spirituality. The blooming and withering of flowers can herald the harvest of the year.
It is said that if five flowers bloom, the harvest will be abundant, and if four flowers bloom, the weather will be auspicious. If the flowers bloom early and have few flowers, there will be drought; if the flowers bloom late and there are many flowers, there will be waterlogging. Observations over the years have shown that peony blooms are a convincing testament to climate change. In 1991, when there was a flood in China, many flowers bloomed, and the flowering period lasted from April 15th to May 5th. This may be because the roots of peonies have to penetrate deep into the rocks. In years of floods, the underground water vapor is strong and the flowering period is long; in drought years, the underground water vapor is insufficient and the flowering period is short. Since 1997, the flowers have bloomed very early every year, with more flowers, and withered quickly, and the flower disks have become smaller. In 2006, there were as many as fourteen flowers, which bloomed early in early April (around April 7), violating the pattern of blooming flowers during the Grain Rain season. This may be related to global warming. In 1976, the Yinping peonies were still in bud, as recorded in the county annals. Peonies were also mourning that difficult year.