Among all flowers, only the peony can rival the beauty of the peony queen. During the Song Dynasty, Yangzhou's peonies shared equal fame with Luoyang's peonies. Wang Guan, in his Preface to the Yangzhou Peony Compendium, proclaimed that both "Luoyang's peonies and Yangzhou's peonies" possessed "extraordinary forms and unique colors."
The peonies cultivated in Yangzhou have been renowned since ancient times. The great Song Dynasty poet Su Shi proclaimed, "Yangzhou peonies reign supreme under heaven." Yangzhou's peonies boast large blooms and vibrant colors that outshine all other flowers, as captured in Wang Meixi's Song Dynasty verse: "Thousand-petaled varieties from Yangzhou, / In late spring, frosts the myriad blooms."
The peony flower is a celebrated ornamental bloom; its root, known as white peony root (Bai Sha), is also a potent medicinal herb.
As early as the Han Dynasty, white peony root was included in the Divine Farmer's Classic of Materia Medica.The Pearl Sack summarized its six functions: calming the spleen meridian, treating abdominal pain, regulating stomach qi, stopping diarrhea and dysentery, harmonizing blood vessels, and strengthening the pores. From ancient times to the present, white peony root has remained a commonly used and important Chinese medicinal herb.
White peony root excels at relieving spasms and alleviating pain. Combined with licorice, it forms the renowned formula Peony and Licorice Decoction for relieving acute pain.It effectively alleviates pain from smooth muscle spasms—such as gastric pain, abdominal pain, menstrual cramps—as well as discomfort stemming from liver and gallbladder disorders. It also provides significant relief for skeletal muscle spasms causing calf pain and lower back pain. This is because the combination of peony root and licorice not only enhances antispasmodic effects but also markedly boosts sedative properties.
White peony root is an excellent remedy for various types of pain, particularly excelling in soothing the liver and alleviating pain. For chest, flank, stomach, and abdominal pain caused by stagnant liver qi, it is often combined with chai hu (Bupleurum root), zhi ke (Fructus Aurantii Immaturus), xiang fu (Cyperus rhizome), and chuan xiong (Ligusticum root) to form the renowned formula Chai Hu Shu Gan San (Bupleurum Liver-Soothing Powder).White peony root also excels at nourishing yin and subduing yang. Patients with yin deficiency and yang hyperactivity often present symptoms like head fullness, dizziness, headache, tinnitus, restlessness, and irritability. Using white peony root helps alleviate these symptoms due to its calming effect.
White peony root also has the function of nourishing blood, making it frequently used in gynecological conditions.The renowned gynecological formula Siwu Tang combines white peony root with prepared rehmannia root, angelica root, and chuanxiong rhizome. It is frequently used for irregular menstruation, menstrual pain, and amenorrhea.For night sweats, it is best combined with Prepared Rehmannia Root, Ophiopogon Root, Schisandra Berry, and Oyster Shell.
Modern pharmacological research also indicates that White Peony Root exhibits antibacterial activity against pathogens like Shigella. Its exceptional ability to relieve spasms and alleviate pain makes it a frequent choice for treating dysentery and enteritis.The White Peony Decoction uses white peony root as its primary ingredient, combined with Scutellaria root, Coptis root, and Aquilaria wood to treat diarrhea, dysentery, and abdominal pain with excellent results.
Peony flowers are large and beautiful, and their medicinal efficacy is outstanding—truly a flower of beauty and a herb of virtue.