Heze

Heze is a prefecture-level city in southwestern Shandong, China. The westernmost prefecture-level city in Shandong, it borders Jining to the east and the provinces of Henan and Anhui to the west and south respectively. The old name of Heze was Caozhou and now a part of the city bears this name. The first character in the city's name is sometimes incorrectly written as instead. The city is situated in the west of Shandong Province on the south bank of the Yellow River. It shares boundaries with Henan, Anhui and Jiangsu provinces. Heze has a long history. There are several sites of ancient Longshan Culture. Its administrative history can be traced back to the 17th century BC. It was known as Caozhou before being renamed after a natural pool in 1735 during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

Caozhou Peony Garden is located 3 kilometers from downtown, it is the world’s largest peony garden with the greatest number of different varieties. This is also the horticultural base of the peony, supplying the plants to scenic garden areas of Beijing, Shanghai Nanjing and Luoyang as well as exporting peony to many other countries. Simple and elegant old style buildings dotted among the flowerbeds enhance the ambiance of the garden. Nowadays, the Caozhou Peony Garden together with Guji