Top Ten Iris Posts of 2021

by Bryce Williamson

As the year 2021 has come to an end, we can take time to reflect on many things in this time of pandemic and opportunities to meet with family and friends with fewer concerns. We can also look back on the ten most viewed posts from 2021 on the World of Irises blog.

2007 Franciris® first prize winner 'Solovinayia Noch'

In tenth place is Sylvain Ruaud’s THE IRIS LADY OF ZHITOMIR: Nina Miroshnichenko.  During the Cold War, it was very hard for gardeners in Central Europe and further east to get modern irises for hybridizing. Against those odds, Nina Miroshnichenko had a long and distinguished career with many iris introductions.

A sharpened trowel was one of many Iris Lover recommendations

In ninth place is Bryce Williamson's Tools for the Iris Garden. After asking for feedback from the Iris Lovers group on Facebook, Bryce's inbox was filled with ideas both serious and humorous.

An illustrated plate with from Portefeuille deshorticulteurs

In eighth place, we find Bob Pries's The Beginnings of Tall Bearded Irises. In his first post for the blog, Bob's article was well received.

Two methods for planting bearded irises

In celebration of this blog turning ten years old, we featured posts with the most views of all time. Number six from that list is also one of the most read posts this year in position seven: Three Myths About Bearded Irises by Tom Waters.

Labels for potted irises

How can we remember what irises we have? Few gardeners aspire to buy two rhizomes of the same variety because of a missing labels. The sixth position is about preventing this very problem. This article also serves to remind us that the East Coast has a long and illustrious history of iris growing. Growing Irises Out East: Labeling Our Treasured Things by Heather Grace (the blog's new managing editor) and her mother Alleah Barnes Haley (the blog's new copy editor).

2021 Wister Medal Winner 'Football Hero'

As we move into the home stretch, it is not surprising we find one of the posts about 2021 American Iris Society (AIS) award winners in position five. Due to the pandemic, the AIS suspended garden awards in 2020 and this year two medals were awarded in each class, or in this case six Wister Medals. The American Iris Society Announces the 2021 Wister Medal Winners.

Top selling iris 'Sand Dancer'

In fourth position, we have a post from Down Under. When an iris enthusiast transitions from growing a few irises to having a out-of-control collection, we want to find out which irises are selling well and why. Mel Schiller wrote about this in the blog Smoking Hot Sellers So Far in the 20/21 Season. I was surprised at how well arilbreds sold for them considering they can be a bit temperamental.

2021 Dykes Medal Winner 'Daring Deception'

Everyone wants to know which irises are awarded the AIS's top garden prize, so it is not surprising that position three is occupied by 2021's two Dykes Medal winners: The American Iris Society Announces the 2021 Dykes Medal Winners.

Heather's first iris dig as a homeowner

The second most viewed post of 2021 is another written by the Haley mother-daughter team: Growing Irises Out East: When It’s Time To Dig In. These "how to" articles are important not only to the new grower of irises, but also to seasoned gardeners for better ways of doing things in the garden.

A sample of an iris grown in revitalized soil

Occupying the position as the most viewed post in 2021 is another by Bryce Williamson. His topic that is dear to the heart of any iris grower who has grown irises for a long time in the same garden: Dishing the Iris Dirt. Growing irises for many years in the same soil is a universal problem and the post was recently translated into French to appear in the French Iris and Bulb Society bulletin.

As the new year begins we look forward to gathering information and disseminating it in more posts about the wonderful World of Irises.