Last Sunday, I went to the Peony garden at the Tsurugaoka Hachimango Shrine. This was constructed by the famed Minamoti Yorimoto, the first shogun of the Kamakura regime in the late 12th century.




Just so beautiful with the little umbrellas for protection of the sun and the skirt protection and mats on the ground for the cold.












The peony is the Chinese famous traditional flower. It represents the characteristic temperament and the cultural features of the Chinese nation, the prosperity of the country, and the diligence of the people.













The peony flower is the symbol of happiness and good luck.


















The flower became know in China in the period of the Qin and Han Dynasties, 221BC - 220AD.
Since the Tang dynasty the peony was ranked "the first flower of the world".













There are now more than 300 kinds of peonies.


Some of them grow for hundreds of years.

Famous names are: "the Green Dragon in the dark pond", "the Green Pea", and the "Drunken Beauty".