Jim M, When you said: "Now this is getting interesting. In recent years, Chinese-grown tree peonies have appeared in local shops. Generally they are less expensive than the Japanese-grown plants (and they appear to be different cultivars). The Chinese plants are bigger, twiggier plants than the Japanese-grown plants, which typically are little more than a scion and stock stuck together. Those Chinese plants are very tempting. When you unpack them, they seem to be a much better deal than the Japanese-grown plants. There are often multiple stems and a superficially much better developed root system. " Rick actually said of Chinese imports: "The plants are ruthlessly trimmed of all the small roots and out growing roots, leaving only a few down growing main roots. My Oregon State inspector said this is for two reasons. Number 1, is to take off any roots that have been infected by soil bugs, namely nematodes and symphylans. The presence of both are readily seen as root knots on the young roots. I have seen plants so badly infected that it looked like the root had marbles inside. If you strip these roots off, then no one can see that the plants are infected. Number 2, is that if you take away all the small roots the plant is far less likely to rot or mold in transit. My inspector said that he sees this with bare root roses from China too. After all this trimming, they put the smallest amount of moss in the middle of the roots and pack in plastic bags with 5 rubber bands. This promotes mold where the plastic touches the root. In '01, I had to destroy a whole shipment of 3000 plants that had mountains of mold. My inspector was so excited because he said that there were so many kinds of mold, many that he had never seen." And about Japanese varieties: "For the last two years I have been ordering through a different vendor from Japan. These plants are huge, packed bulk, one layer of plants then a thick layer of moss, and so on. The plants are NOT TRIMMED AT ALL. The best part is that 98% grow out in the spring. I can send you a price list from our best vendor if you like. The proof is in the pudding. When I put the plants from different vendors side to side, there is no comparison." As far as roots and grafting, most tree varieties are increased by grafting onto herbaceous roots. This serves several purposes. First, the tree peony roots are not as strong of growers as the herbaceaous ones. So, if you wanted to grow tree peonies on their own roots, you would be waiting some time for the cuttings to form a sizeable enough root structure to be marketable. But, the Chinese are master gardeners when it comes to their prize plants. So, they take their time and wait, and thus, the prices go up with it. But, there are ways to remove the herbaceous root from the tree peony. Rick, again, was kind enough to tell me his trick for such an act with minimal impact on the plant. When planting, plant deep, 6-8" below the soil line to the top of the graft union. This does double duty. First, herbaceous roots cannot grow that far. So, it does not allow them to take off. If they are planted shallowly like other peonies, the herbaceous growth will surpass the tree graft and thus, all will be lost. Second, it forces the tree graft to produce it's own roots. Now, to the trade secret. Get a very strong piece of metal wire. Use it like a twist-tie and put it right at the union of the tree stem and herbaceous root and tie securely. So, when the herbaceous root starts to expand, it slowly girdles itself and does not allow the tree to get more food from it. Thus, it forces the tree to produce it's own roots to compensate for it. So, over the years, you will have a tree peony growing on it's own root system. Now, about the names, I will go with the irony of old translaters and say that they are great. Even if they were meant to be sarcastic, they are very artistic and sometimes quite descriptive in their own right. ===== John Ingram in L.A., CA. http://www.floralarchitecture.com/ check it out Floralartistry2000@yahoo.com 310.709.1613 (cell, west coast time, please call accordingly. Thank you)