Dianjiang Tree Peony Bark

Dianjiang Tree Peony Bark

Dianjiang Tree Peony Bark is a geographical indication certification trademark.

Dianjiang Tree Peony Bark is a geographical indication agricultural product.

　　Dianjiang is nationally renowned as the hometown of tree peony bark, with peonies boasting rich cultural significance.

　　Chongqing’s Dianjiang County, which has over 2,000 years of peony cultivation history, grows approximately 20,000 mu (about 1,333 hectares) of peonies across five towns—Taiping, Chengxi, Xinmin, Guixi, and Shaping—featuring more than 60 varieties. Among them, Taiping Town, the largest planting area, is also honored as the “Hometown of Tree Peony Bark.”

　　Walking through the mountains, rows of peonies thrive along paths and in forests, nourished by light rain. Though not in bloom, the sight is still quite spectacular. Cheng Xianhua, administrator of the Taiping Town Peony Garden in Dianjiang, told reporters that because peonies can only be harvested every 3 to 5 years, the garden adopts a method of alternating rows and years for harvesting tree peony bark. “For a plot like this, we harvest one row this year and the next row the following year. This ensures the quality of the bark and also maintains ecological balance—a win-win,” he explained. He added that turning peonies into tree peony bark involves digging up the roots, removing the core and fine roots, and then drying them.

　　Tree peony bark is the dried root bark of the peony, known for its effects in clearing heat, cooling blood, invigorating blood circulation, and resolving stasis. According to modern pharmacological research, it also offers anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, blood sugar-lowering, anti-thrombotic, and anti-atherosclerotic benefits. In 1962, the former Ministry of Commerce organized experts to evaluate the quality of tree peony bark from across the country, and Dianjiang’s product ranked first nationally. Since then, Dianjiang County has become a base for tree peony bark cultivation, supplying high-quality bark not only across China but also exporting to countries such as Japan and Singapore, where it is highly favored. Cheng Xianhua did the math: the annual output of tree peony bark is around 3,000 tons, and at a price of 30 yuan per kilogram, the economic value reaches 90 million yuan.

　　“My family has been growing peonies for generations,” said Huang Qingzhong, a villager from Peony Village in Taiping Town. “The price of tree peony bark has always been good, so I’ve planted all my family’s land with peonies. My over ten mu of land brings in more than 10,000 yuan a year.” He noted that during the annual harvest season, companies come to purchase the bark directly, and some even place orders in advance. There are over 300 large-scale tree peony bark growers like Huang in Peony Village, with the largest households cultivating more than 20 mu. The village currently has over 10,000 mu of peonies planted, with over 3,000 mu harvested annually, yielding more than 20 tons. The sale of tree peony bark alone adds 500,000 to 600,000 yuan to local farmers’ income each year.

　　Nowadays, farmers’ income is no longer limited to just growing peonies and selling tree peony bark. Since 1999, Dianjiang County has held an annual Peony Festival, developing the ornamental value of local peonies. Hundreds of thousands of tourists visit the Taiping Town Peony Garden each year to admire the flowers and sample peony-themed dishes, boosting the agritainment tourism economy and creating a new source of income for local farmers.

　　“This year, we plan to develop another 1,000-plus mu of peony plantations,” said a Taiping Town official. Due to the current high market demand and relatively lucrative harvesting prices for tree peony bark, coupled with the advantages of local tourism development resources, Taiping Town will continue to expand peony cultivation on a large scale through returning farmland to forest and land transfers, further increasing local farmers’ income.

　　Region:

　　Chongqing

　　Applicant:

　　Dianjiang County Fruit and Vegetable Management Station

　　Region:

　　2014

　　Geographic Scope

　　The geographic scope of Dianjiang Tree Peony Bark includes five towns within Dianjiang County—Taiping, Chengxi, Xinmin, Guixi, and Shaping—located in the altitudinal band of 500–800 meters along the inner valleys of Mingyue Mountain, Jinghua Mountain, and Huangcao Mountain. The core area lies along the highway from Chengxi Town to Shaping Town, within the fluvial trough between the Eastern and Western Mountains, encompassing villages such as Mudan, Guihua, Qunli, Zilu, and Yongyi in Taiping Town, and Tongji, Shuanggui, Gaoping, and Changxing in Chengxi Town. The geographical coordinates are longitude 107°13′ to 107°40′ and latitude 29°38′ to 30°31′. It is bordered by Pingle Village in Shaping Town to the east, Shuanggui Village in Chengxi Town to the south and west, and Dongyin Village in Shaping Town to the north. The production area spans 2,000 hectares, with an annual tree peony bark yield of 2,625 tons.

　　Product Quality Characteristics

　　1. External Sensory Features: Dianjiang Tree Peony Bark includes raw bark and scraped bark. Raw bark appears cylindrical or semi-cylindrical, with longitudinal split fissures, slightly curled inward, measuring 5–20 cm in length, 0.5–1.2 cm in diameter, and 0.2–0.4 cm in thickness. The outer surface is grayish-brown with numerous transverse lenticel-like protrusions and fine root marks, and the peeled areas are pinkish. The inner surface is pale grayish-yellow or light brown, featuring distinct fine longitudinal striations and often shiny crystals. It is hard and brittle, easily broken, with a relatively flat cross-section that is pale pinkish and powdery. It has an aromatic scent and a slightly bitter, astringent taste. Scraped bark shows scrape marks on the outer surface; the outer surface is reddish-brown or pale grayish-yellow, sometimes with residual grayish-brown spotted outer skin, but otherwise shares the same characteristics as raw bark. 2. Internal Quality Indicators: The content of paeonol in Dianjiang Tree Peony Bark is ≥2.5%. 3. Safety Requirements: The production environment complies with NY/T 391-2013 "Quality of Green Food Production Environment," and the product quality meets the requirements of the "GAP Certification Inspection and Evaluation Standards."