When Michael started the enterprise, he had little interest in or knowledge about flowers of any kind. “My mom jokes that I didn’t give her flowers when I was growing up,” he laughs. “Now, she has all the peonies she wants.” Over time, Michael has come to appreciate the brilliant beauty of peonies. “They come in so many shapes and colors—red, white, yellow, coral, pink. Many have a sweet fragrance,” he adds. Peonies have bedecked gardens throughout the world for more than one thousand years. Different species are native to Asia, southern Europe, and western North America. Useful and ornamental, their seeds and roots once were used as medicine. In ancient Greek mythology, the plant derived its name from Paeon, a student of Aesclepius, the Greek god of medicine. Zeus, the king of the gods, spared Paeon from Aesclepius’s wrath by transforming him into a flower. Another myth tells of how mere mortals obtained this heavenly plant from Olympus, home of the gods. Whatever the origin, the results were similar wherever the stunning bloom was cultivated. In China, it became a national symbol. When Buddhist monks brought the peony to Japan, it became known as the flower of riches and honor, because only wealthy people could afford it.
