Peony flowers bloom in Heze, E China’s Shandong

Photo shows blooming peony flowers at the Caozhou Peony Garden in Mudan district, Heze city, east China’s Shandong Province. (People’s Daily Online/Liu Qi)

Blooming peony flowers attracted throngs of visitors from across China on April 8 when the 2023 World Peony Conference kicked off in Heze city, east China’s Shandong Province.

Heze is nicknamed the “peony capital of China.” Peony planting began during the Sui Dynasty (581–618) in Heze. The city is home to 1,280 varieties of peony flowers and is the world’s largest peony production and export hub.

Caozhou in Heze has a history of planting peony of over 1,000 years. More than 1,000 varieties of the flower species have been planted on 100,000 mu (6,666 hectares) of land in Caozhou.