Portuguese peony
Paeonia broteri
Family · Paeoniaceae · Irritating
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The Peninsula's largest wild flower, strong pink and the size of an open hand, endemic to Portugal and Spain. Finding one on a mountain trail is one of the best things spring gives.
Uplands · Oak woods · Scrubland
Also known asIberian peony
How to tell it
A solitary carmine-pink flower with a centre packed with yellow stamens. Large divided leaves, bluish beneath. In autumn the fruits open to show black and red seeds in the same pod.
What it is confused with
No dangerous lookalikes known in the Iberian Peninsula.
What it is for
None
It was gathered for centuries as a medicinal and ornamental plant, and that gathering is why it is rare today. All parts are toxic.
The law says
A protected species, Iberian endemic and in decline. Do not pick the flower or dig up the root.
Where it occurs
Each square is an area with recorded observations of this plant. The lighter background is the set of areas where any of the entries has been observed, and serves as a reference. Note what this is not: it is not where the plant lives, it is where people record it, so trails and towns always look fuller than the mountains. Data from GBIF.
Sources
Community
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