half mature

Paeonia mascula ssp. hellenica ( Hong De - Yuan) This lustrous white flowering subspecies of paeonia mascula, confined to S Greece and the Aegean Island. The leaves are glabrous ( var. hellenica - mainland) or strongly pilose beneath ( var. icarica - islands ). In the new classification of Hong De- Yuan this division is abandoned. In wild populations 90 % of the plants bear pure white flowers, some are suffused with red or pink.  Uncommon in cultivation, they grow and flower well on warm sunny places on well drained limestone soils, protected against to much rain in summer if necessary