Balkan Peony, planinski božur

Description:

A herbaceous perennial plant 0.5–1.5 metres tall has leaves which are divided into three segments and large red flowers in late spring and early summer.The plant is self-fertile. On third photo are open fruits of peony. Protected by the low since 1958. in Croatia.

Habitat:

mountain meadow, exposed to sun

Notes:

The peony is named after Paeon, a physician to the gods who obtained the plant on Mount Olympus from the mother of Apollo. According to the legend, the peony needed to be left alone and punished those who try to move it by not flowering again for several years. Once established, however, it blooms each year for decades.