Peony Registry

The name was previously published in 1999 (Bulletin 312, p11) as a name reservation. Registered here to properly establish the name under ICNCP guidelines. LUTEA HYBRID tree peony. Seedling number SH-171. Parentage: ‘Anna Marie’ x ‘Shintenchi’. This is a backcross, ¾ Moutan, ¼ lutea. First bloomed in I992, from 1987 seed. First propagated 1992. Large, eight inch white flowers, one per stem, shaded very pale pink toward the center and framing a ring of short, wispy, white filaments without anthers. 5-9 green carpels are tipped with white stigmas and partially enclosed by a medium purple sheath. Flower form is SEMI-DOUBLE to DOUBLE (35 petals); wide (to 3 inch) outer petals change to narrower inner petals whose edges are scalloped and crinkled. The fragrant blooms are held upright (no lutea hook) just above the foliage, which is dark green and rather tropical-looking, having more rounded, broader foliage than is typical of this peony type. The foliage color changes to red in late fall, like that of its pollen parent. Mature clump measures 30 inches high by 36 inches broad. Has never produced viable seeds. Named for Mother Teresa (1910-1997), who in 1950 established the religious order, Missionaries of Charity, which ministers spiritually and physically to the poor, abandoned, sick, infirm and the dying. The color of the flower, white with purple sheath, nearly matches the habit of the sisters, white, edged with three blue stripes.