Betting he could give nature a little nudge

Keeping a promise to the flower show, Michael Hsu made his exotic Chinese tree peonies bloom before their time.

By Zlati Meyer
INQUIRER SUBURBAN STAFF

RICHLAND - Spring arrived early this year on the second floor of Michael Hsu's barn, where small red, pink and white buds peeked out from dullish stems, little bursts of color against picture windows overlooking dozens of acres of snowy fields.

His Chinese tree peonies, force-bloomed in the relative warmth of the 50-degree barn, are now in exuberant fullness at Booth 603 at the Philadelphia Flower Show, competing with other spurts of spring for visitors' attention.

Hsu grows 50,000 of the exotic plants - 500 varieties in 11 colors - on his 54 acres in Bucks County called PeonyLand, believed to be one of the largest Chinese tree peony farms in the Western Hemisphere.

He initially planted his springtime delights in 1999, but this is the first season his peonies, which are known as the "king of flowers" in China, have been ready to sell, at prices of $60 to $300.

"It's an inherent part of Chinese culture, pottery and art," Hsu said. "It's the national flower of China. I thought it was something that would grow here."

The tree peony, called mudan in Chinese, produces fragrant flowers in whites, pinks, reds, greens, maroons, purples and yellows, with different-colored centers. They range from having one to three layers of petals to full spheres.

Hsu said no beauty was spared when the Chinese chose names for the peonies, which are symbols of a family's prosperity and glory.

"When naming these things, they waxed poetically," Hsu said. "It's not just 'red.' It's 'Palace Maiden in Red Dress.' "

Among his varieties are "Black Dragon Lying in Ink Pool," "Gold on Jade Plate," "Silver Fish Teasing Green Pearls" and his favorite, the half-purple, half-pink "Twin Beauty," which, according to folklore, was named for two sisters considered the most beautiful women in China.

The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society invited PeonyLand to exhibit because of the promise of peony blooms forced ahead of their usual May opening.

"They said they would force peonies to be in bloom at the show, which told us they were a cut above everyone else," said Steve Maurer, a society spokesman. "It's not an easy thing to do. We were impressed with their technical ability and convinced they could deliver a product of a high quality."

The promise has apparently lived up to expectations.

"Their exhibit adds an element of quality, professionalism and excellence to the flower show landscape," Maurer said Tuesday.

Forcing involved uprooting the plants in the dead of winter and potting them indoors, where the temperature was raised slowly from 45 to 65 degrees over two months to mimic spring.

Hsu, 31, a business graduate of Drexel University, learned about tree peonies from studying botany in China and visiting the country four times a year.

He said the plants - his are now four to seven years old - can live more than 100 years, reaching heights of four to six feet, with hundreds of blossoms, each six to 14 inches in diameter. But it is their resplendent beauty and no-frills caretaking that appeal to professional and amateur gardeners.

"They're easy to care for; no pruning's necessary," Hsu said. "They come in many varieties and nine different shapes, and over 10 colors. The blossoms are large and fragrant, and they're very delicate. The petals are silklike."

He found his plot of land, formerly a gentleman farm, while driving through Richland in 1996. He moved from Devon and prepared the ground, working with four friends and relatives.

Clients include Waterloo Gardens in Devon, and garden centers in Washington, Maryland, New Jersey, California and Texas. Hsu recently bought a truck and plans to deliver "as far north as Boston, as far south as South Carolina and as far west as Ohio."

That is not far for these Chinese tree peonies to travel. Hsu imports his from a farm in Luoyang, China, that his family partly owns. Unlike other peony vendors who buy the plants from China, repackage them and resell them right away, Hsu said he planted the leafless imports in the hearty Bucks County soil long enough for them to bloom at least one season, so that customers know exactly what color they are buying.

"They're easy to grow and they're hardy," he said. "They're proven, which means [customers] know they're going to survive," he said. "Plus, we allow them to grow roots and put out hair roots, which are feeder roots. They're healthier. They're stronger. They'll live longer. It's a costly way of doing business, but we do it that way, because it's the surest way to make people happy."