Yellow Louisiana Irises

Often, yellow Louisiana irises get too little respect. There was a day when they were rare and prized.Yellow is a recessive color in two of the five Louisiana species: I. fulva and I. nelsonii. At the height of the collecting days before 1940, it was a treat to discover a yellow fulva. It still is today.

Yellow nelsonii was even more rare, primarily because that species is limited to a few square miles southeast of Abbeville, Louisiana. At least for those collected irises that were subsequently registered, there were no more than a handful of yellows, but the yellow genes were there, lurking in the background of the red species and ready to burst forth in hybridizing.

The true yellow form of I. nelsonii appeared lost until recently rediscovered by Benny Trahan. It is the typical mustard yellow, perhaps with a hint of orange, in contrast to the lighter, cleaner yellow of most fulva examples. (Go here for links to the story of Benny's yellow nelsonii).

In fact there is a range of yellow shades in fulvas in the wild, from the clean light yellow of ‘Marvell Gold’, discovered in Arkansas, to the butterscotch of Steve Shepard’s ‘Lottie Butterscotch’, found a few years back near Lottie, Louisiana, due west of Baton Rouge.

The real reason for any lack of respect for yellow Louisianas has to be laid at the doorstep of I. pseudacorous, at least along the Gulf Coast. Here, where bearded irises are problematic and seldom seen, pseudacorous will flourish, even in areas where it has no business flourishing. It is an exotic species that, like Louisianas, enjoys a bayou or freshwater marsh habitat. It will escape, establish itself and crowd out other plants, including Louisiana irises. In a few areas, it is a genuine problem.

The gardening public sees pseudacorus all around. The yellow form of the species is nothing if not vigorous, so there is plenty available. Landscapers use it, even sometimes when they believe they are planting Louisiana irises. Many people picture pseudacorous even when talking about Louisianas.

The number one question iris society members are asked at gardening events, is, “Why aren’t my yellow Louisiana irises blooming?” This triggers a standard narrative: “Do your irises have a midrib? If so, they are not Louisiana iris... Don’t try to mix them with Louisianas... They are great for foliage, but in garden beds as opposed to water do not bloom as reliably as Louisiana irises… You might want to get rid of those (and good luck)... Try some Louisianas... Louisiana irises do come in yellow but also every other color and many forms and, by the way, are actually native."

If there is a pseudacorous anti-defamation league, I don’t mean to get it riled up. I respect all the iris cousins and their extended families. Some of the pseudacorous hybrids looks especially interesting and I would like to try them. But as I write from New Orleans, the Louisiana irises are closer kin. Brothers and sisters, tight family. Our native irises get priority over guests, especially ones that sometimes misbehave. But first and foremost, gardeners should know what they have, or might be getting, and make informed choices.

There are plenty of modern Louisiana hybrids that can satisfy any craving for yellow. Just a few of the good ones include Harry Wolford’s ‘Edna Claunch’ and new ‘Love Of My Life’; Patrick O’Connor’s ‘Rigolets’; and Heather Pryor’s ‘For Dad’. The yellow line is not hard and fast, and such blends as Dorman Haymon’s ‘Praline Festival’ and Wolford’s bicolor ‘Roar Of The Tiger’ show yellow joining with other colors in spectacular combinations.

Like all Louisiana irises, the yellow ones continue to improve, with more and larger flowers, improved substance, good form and various embellishments. They will bloom well in a normal garden bed and are good neighbors to other plants. Model citizens, with a tradition of southern hospitality and creole flair.

Why attend a National Convention

I find that people who go to national conventions attend for different reasons. Some go to enjoy an outing to a favorite destination. Others, to see iris types they don’t normally grow, while others to see the same iris they grow at home and to find ways to grow them better.

(Above: 'She's a Doll" by Lynda Miller (R. 2010) at Hartley Park, Victoria, BC. You will not see MTBs like this in some conventions.)

Whatever the reason, I’m always amazed at the variety of people that comprises AIS, and their passion for irises. If you’ve been to a garden trek at your local club, you probably have observed all the friendly discussions that have turned up around our favorite plants. Well, I think those friendly discussions intensify at national conventions. Many of us become iris fanatics, and we could spend a serious amount of time observing a certain bloom, certain foliage, and discussing their many attributes, or perhaps find many faults. I think discussions, or call them arguments, are all good for our gardening society, as they are part of our educational process for better understanding iris growth habits, soil conditions needed for successful bloom, and for realizing better development of plants.

(Above: Unknow Pacific Coast Native Iris at Spiers Garden, Salt Spring Island, BC. You will probably not see these PCNIs at many conventions).

But for me, one great reason to attend national conventions is as follows. I love being around our older -- excuse me, more mature -- members. Many have grown irises for years and know exactly how to nurture each variety for thriving results. I love listening to their stories of past conventions, and their own conversations with hybridizers and growers.

(Above: Government House, Victoria, BC)

Just recently, one of them told me why she so endeared a certain garden visit she paid to Monty Byers, and how he was so special in her heart. It brought so much more meaning to my experience of observing Monty’s creations. Be it not for their shyness, we could find that these experienced members have a wealth of knowledge.

So, next time you attend a convention, perhaps CALIZONA GOLD 2012, establish a friendly conversation with AIS members, but specifically with "mature" members and you may just find something new about irises that you never new before.

Now, please tell me your reasons for attending an AIS national convention.

What Is that Iris Doing??

Have you ever come across a bloom in your iris bed that had you looking closer and scratching your head? There are instances, both natural and artificially induced, of iris blooms exhibiting some strange attributes. Here's a few common occurrences that I've seen over the years.

This first shot shows the effect of the herbicide Roundup on irises. The poison doesn't kill the iris plant, but it does distort the blooms for the following season. Colors tend to be washed out and petals not fully formed. This is a mild case seen here.


Some irises are unstable in their coloration. 'Batik', one of the most popular broken-colored irises, is one such. Many irises will throw out swipes of a chimeric color on a petal once in a great while, but 'Batik' does so regularly as part of it's pattern. It has even been known to sport new rhizomes of stable plicata patterned flowers devoid of the color-breaking.


Just as some irises are unstable with their genes for color, some others seem to be unstable with their form. In my previous post about Flatties I mentioned the habit of 'Clematis' to be a typical iris flower - until warm weather sets in and new buds open in a flat form. Well, 'Quail' also shows a flat form but this time on only the last one or two blooms that open - as if it just ran out of some parts after making so many flowers and was left with just falls and extra pieces to work with.


It is not uncommon to see multiple petals on an early bloom, and likewise late blooms sometimes lack all the parts they should have. This shot of a bloom on 'Goldfish' shows a range of petals and petaloids trying to mimic a normal flower, leaving a crazy quilt effect for the eye to try and decipher.


Tho distorting the iris' lovely form, these different expressions in our favorite flower can add a sense of wonder and novelty on the rare occasions when they manifest. With the exception of the Roundup damage, they are naturally occurring phenomena and aren't a sign of a problem with your plants.

Top 15 Favorite Irises at the Victoria 2011 AIS Convention

Here are the TOP 15 Favorite Irises of the Victoria Convention of the American Iris Society:

1. ‘Dazzling’ IB (Paul Black 2008)
2. ‘Star in the Night’ IB (Paul Black 2009)
3. ‘Man’s Best Friend’ IB (Paul Black 2008)
4. ‘Ginger Twist’ SIB (Schafer/Sacks 2009)
5. ‘Banner for Iona’ PCN (J. Prothero, r. 2010)
6. ‘Brash and Bold’ AB (Paul Black 2009)
7. ‘Fall Line’ IB (Michael Sutton 2009)
8. ‘Snow Lion’ TB (Marky Smith 2008)
9. ‘Limonada’ IB (Keith Keppel 2007)
10. ‘Rimaround’ IB (Terry Aitken 2007)
11. ‘Dollie and Me’ MTB (Linda Miller, r. 2010)
12. ‘Flash of Light’ TB (Thomas Johnson 2008)
13. ‘Nouveau Riche’ TB (Keith Keppel 2008)
14. ‘Hoosier Dome’ TB (L. Miller 2007)
15. ‘Saltspring Sunburst’ PCN (J. Prothero . r. 2010)

(above, and below: PCN 'Banner for Iona.'

Iona V. Campagnolo, Ex-Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, an avid gardener and a member of the British Columbia Iris Society was presented with a Pacific Coast Iris (PCN) named after her for her dedication to the iris society, and for being instrumental to helping put together the 2011 AIS Convention. Ms. Campagnolo was named Honorary Patron of the Convention. ‘Banner for Iona,’ is a beautiful PCN that was gorgeously blooming at the guest gardens. While Lieutenant Governor, Ms. Campagnolo greatly enhanced and developed the Government House gardens; a group she established of over four hundred volunteers takes care of the Government House Gardens in Victoria. The house serves as residence to the British Columbia Governor.

Registration information: 'BANNER FOR IONA' by Joyce Prothero, (R. 2010). Sdlg. SS-B. 14" (36 cm), EM. S. silver lavender, lighter center veined darker lavender; style arms silver lavender, darker lavender midribs and crests; F. broad silver lavender band, center light lavender veined darker, small yellow flash signal; SPCNI seed exchange. 'Foothill Banner' X unknown.

Late Bloomers Extend the Iris Season

For those missing the iris blooms once the bearded season ends why not try some beardless species to extend the season? Here's a few I really enjoy seeing in summer.

Louisiana irises come in an amazing array of colors. 'Black Gamecock' is a beautiful deep purple, nearly black, and is very cold hardy. It is a reliable bloomer here even tho I am sure it would like more water in the dry summer months. Tho they thrive in their native bogs they do just as well in rich garden soil with average watering.


English irises are a bulbous species related to Dutch and Spanish irises. They are not native to England, but they do best in its cool mild climate, as well as here in the Pacific Northwest.





Each July brings blooms on the Japanese irises in my garden. I don't have many as our dry, sandy conditions are not to their liking, but a few rugged varieties manage to thrive for me. This is one, a large flowered variety in shades of lavender and blue with bright yellow-green darts at the heart.


Consider trying a few of these types if you're looking for irises with mid-summer impact. With the right combination of species and varieties you can have irises in bloom almost all year long.

Collecting Historic Irises

There are as many different ways to enjoy irises as there are people to enjoy them, and with dedicated iris collectors this holds true as well. No one iris garden ever looks like another. As the taste and personality of the gardeners comes into play we see it reflected not only in how the garden is arranged but also in what types of irises are represented. Whether you grow a few examples of different species scattered about your perennial garden, or look for the latest and greatest offerings from the top bearded iris hybridizers, or enjoy the history behind the classic varieties, there is something in the world of irises to please everyone.


[Above: a collection of varieties by Dr. R. E. Kleinsorge.]

If you had come to my garden last weekend for the annual 'Open garden/Iris Tour' you would have predominantly seen a wonderful collection of historic irises. When I first began gardening and was looking around for plants to add to my new beds I was fortunate to have several folks give me starts of old pass-along bearded irises that they had in turn received from a friend or ancestor. When they started blooming it brought back fond memories of my grandmother's gardens, both of which had many irises growing about, and set off a passion for more. The more I learned about irises and their long history the more I was drawn to those old varieties and the more of them I started acquiring.

I have seen folks arrange their beds of old irises by the decade of their origin to lovely effect. Irises of the same era often compliment each other well in their color tones and forms. Planned color schemes, regardless of era of the flowers involved, can also bring stunning views to the flower garden. I've used arrangement by hybridizer to good effect in my own plantings. I work under the theory that hybridizers move reselected seedlings to beds together for further evaluation, and irises planted with others which compliment them could not help but be a bit ahead in the running for introduction, so it is not surprising that those a master breeder finally selected for this honor would all be harmonious in a planting together. At right is a lovely conglomeration of several of the plicatas created by Jim Gibson.

Shortly after beginning my collecting I discovered the Historic Iris Preservation Society and AIS too. This has brought me into contact with hundreds of historic iris lovers over the last decade. I love to see how all the different folks I meet decide what to focus on and how they handle their collections and gardens, as seeing other gardens always inspires me to do new things in my own. I not only enjoy visiting iris gardens but I also enjoy showing off my garden by participating in the HIPS Display Garden program. Last weekend a dozen folks stopped by thru the day to tour the flowers and see a wide variety of different members of the iris family. It was great to see so much enthusiasm over these classic flowers. HIPS members are very generous in opening their gardens to folks wanting to see older irises, and I hope you'll check out HIPS' website for the listings and plan to visit gardens in your area.


Should you be interested in starting your own collection of historic irises now is a great time. HIPS is currently running their annual Rhizome Sale. This is the Society's main fund raiser which allows us to publish ROOTS, the biannual bulletin of the Society. If you are interested in historic iris, and supporting the mission of HIPS to preserve them, we'd love to get you started. Please see the website for details.

What irises do you collect and how do you grow and arrange them? Please tell us in the comments!

Will the real Iris sintenisii PLEASE stand up!

What could be simpler than identifying an iris species? After all, we are not talking about thousands of cultivars and there are plenty of good species descriptions. Right?

There seem to be a number of impostors being called Iris sintenisii, but the real thing might be right under my nose.

(1)

Years ago I purchased a plant (1) under this name, but it never looked right. Later I was given a different (2) I. sintenisii that fit photos better. Then I acquired Iris brandzae (3) which all the literature agrees is a subspecies of I. sintenisii and is very distinctive. Here is where identifications really began to get confusing.

If brandzae really is a subspecies (ssp) of sintenisii, they should both look something alike. My two other plants were quite different although obviously small spurias. I then grew a fourth small spuria (4) under the name I. kerneriana. I've grown this before and it is an attractive small plant with yellow flowers. When it bloomed it had violet purple flowers so was obviously another mis-named small spuria. That's 4 plants including the obvious I. brandzae.

(2)

I wondered about this but never dug deeper into the species descriptions until this spring. All four iris bloomed and it was obvious some had the wrong name. After reading descriptions of all the smaller spuria species. And starting with a fairly clear idea of the correct ID of I. brandzae I have begun to sort these four iris out.

The plant grown as I. kerneriana (4) corresponds to a larger version of I. brandzae with similar flowers and overlapping bloom season. All species iris books concur with the description of what I have as I. sintenisii ssp brandzae. This makes plant #3 closest to what the true I. sintenisii should be.

(3)

My original plant (1) has bloomed often enough that I am fairly certain that it is actually a short form of I. carthalinae.

This leaves my second plant (2) that everyone else grows as I. sintenisii, but I now think has to be an imposter. So what is this one? Using the BIS Species Guide and Mathew's "Iris", I am leaning toward I. pontica, but having never seen or grown this species it is just a guess.

(4)

I sent photos around to a few spuria iris gurus to confirm my suspicions, but everyone that replied guessed other name combinations and none saw my similarities. One guessed I. graminea which is very distinct from the other small spurias and I have grown for years with a firm understanding of the correct ID.

Now if only I could identify the iris commonly grown as Iris sintenisii (2). I am hoping to get pictures and descriptions together for another round of 'Name That Iris". Until then will the real Iris sintenisii please stand up and be identified?

(Iris sintenisii)

Alternatives to Bearded Iris at the Show

May is iris season in most places, but not only bearded iris.

Although Iris shows abound and these have everything from Intermediate to Tall Bearded Irises and an array or aril and aril bred Irises, there's so much more if you seek out variety.


The first are a couple of the crested iris species. I suppose everyone knows the 'story' of the so-called "Japanese Roof" Iris, Iris tectorum. It is not from Japan and it doesn't grow on roofs. Of course. The species is native to China where it is known simply as "Iris". It is common, wide spread, tolerates a range of growing conditions and the Japanese long ago brought plants from China to Japan where it escaped and settled down.

The story goes that in feudal Japan the Shogun and other powers mandated that only edible plants could be grown by the peasants. Although it is true that the ground rhizome of Iris tectorum is used to produce a fine quality of pale face powder, it is not true that women skirted the growing ban by cultivating this iris on Japanese thatch roofs to divert from the terrestrial restrictions. I imagine it CAN be grown in a thick thatch, but surely some wise ladies could find a spot in the corner of the rice fields or around a corner to stick a couple rhizomes of this lovely iris. What is true is that the first western botanists who 'discovered' this species fell hook line and sinker for this fairy tale.... and it does make a good story, one of those garden conversation starters.



The nice thing is that the iris is easy to grow, hardy and can be very floriferous when happy. The typical blue-violet color is remarkably consistent although a few named variants have been introduced over the years. The biggest variation is the nearly pure white 'Alba' form. Unlike many 'albas' it is equally vigorous and hardy. An added bonus is that it is easy from seed and the white form comes true. The SIGNA seed exchange almost always has seed available.



Although there really are varieties with variegated foliage, there are no named cultivars. A few different variegated patterns have been reported and at least one is occasionally offered for sale. It has white stripes in the foliage in early spring, but as summer approaches the variegation fades. It is a weak grower and poor bloomer compared to typical forms.

Iris tectorum is suited to all but the very coldest or hottest and driest gardens. It makes a good non-bearded specimen for the May Iris shows.

Quite comparable in many ways to this Asian beauty is the American native, Iris cristata , the Crested Iris. This species is native to a large part of the Central United States where it grows in thin soils in woodlands. It can form large mats of leaves dotted with flowers ranging from white, to blue to violet. Most gardeners find it fairly easy to grow in light shade and woodland soils.



The flowers are born on short 'stems' rarely more than six inches except in a cultivar such as 'Powder Blue Giant' which, as you might suppose is taller. There are more than a dozen named cultivars including all the color range plus those with double flowers. Its small size and ultra floriferous nature make it perfect for the woodland rock garden.



Iris cristata is a near perfect educational 'point' for iris shows. It is so much tinier than most other entries, it has a distinct form and it is native to the United States. If your show has an "Artisitic Design' Section for small arrangements this species has a very high 'cute quotient' and is tailor made for that.



Even smaller and a bit trickier to grow is the Lake Iris, Iris lacustris, found around the Great Lakes of the United States in gravel and sandy spots under shoreline cedars. Like its relative the crested iris, it occurs in shades of blue, violet and white although the latter is quite rare. The whole species is rare and it is protected in many parts of its range. The Lake Iris grows in similar situations to the Crested Iris, but may be even hardier. As a cut flower in the Iris show it may bewilder many of the viewers. The gardener just has to keep track of it so it doesn't get over grown by more aggressive companions in the garden.



Of course the rarest of the rare are the historical reports of pink flowered Crested and Lake Irises. Both have been rumored, but neither plants nor pictures exist. We can only dream.

Meanwhile these medium, small and smallest crested iris are perfect garden and show conversations starters. And if all you grow is bearded irises of all sorts, you need to expand your growing horizons into these woodland wonders.

The Iris Center of the Universe, Revisited

Dr. John K. Small of the New York Botanical Garden was a major figure in the recognition of Louisiana irises. In the late 1920s and 1930s, Small studied native irises in Louisiana and Florida, named over forty species (all rescinded but one) and created a horticultural sensation by publishing gorgeous color plates in the Garden’s journal Addisonia.

As the story goes, Small was traveling from Florida by train when he spotted fields of irises in the then-swampy outskirts of New Orleans. He returned over a number of years and was led by local people to interesting sites to collect and study the wide variety of irises growing wild. The number and diversity of forms and colors he encountered led Small to dub the area around New Orleans “The Iris Center of the Universe.”

A big dose of hyperbole, of course. But the truth in Small’s characterization lay in the variation he found among several species and uncounted natural hybrids in those areas in and around New Orleans where the deltas of natural waterways, the habitat of I. fulva, created higher land in the midst of freshwater marsh where the tall blue I. giganticaerulea made its home. I. brevicaulis was found in the area also, but not widespread; it likes wet soil but slightly higher ground and occurred in pockets here and there. The “Iris Center of the Universe” was a niche where the reds and blues and the recessive whites and yellows could blend and excite the interest of gardeners and scientists alike

Decades of development obliterated the stands of Louisiana iris in the City. New Orleans steadily filled the land and paved the spaces between Lake Pontchartrain and the River, probably an ill-advised step as hindsight attests. Once much of the City must have looked as it did in 1867 when Theodore Lilienthal photographed irises. Now, wild irises can be found only on the periphery, although their predecessors’ genes live on in today’s hybrids.

At the turn of the twenty-first century, no one would have designated New Orleans as a hotbed of iris interest. To be sure, as everywhere in the country, there was a steadily growing recognition of modern Louisiana hybrids. Gardeners increasingly grew them, and Louisianas maintained a presence in public gardens over the years, even if they waxed and waned somewhat with changes in the focus of those in charge.

Since Hurricane Katrina, however, there has been a remarkable surge in interest in Louisiana irises in New Orleans. The storm devastated the City’s public gardens and parks. The lingering brackish water left most an ugly brown and facing major restoration efforts. Suddenly, the appeal of native irises exploded. There was, in fact, a perfect storm of demand and supply, as those working to restore gardens were met by growers in Mooringsport, Schriever, Denham Springs, Slidell and New Orleans willing to donate Louisiana irises by the thousands.

Today, over five years after Hurricane Katrina, it would be a challenge to name a place where more Louisiana irises can be seen. There are major new plantings in the largest public gardens, and in the past year the irises have been introduced into local parks. As the following suggests, the iris future is bright.

Longue Vue House and Garden consists of a classical revival mansion surrounded by an eight acre garden created by New Orleans civic activists and philanthropists Edith and Edgar Stern. The garden development dates from 1934 with a design by Ellen Biddle Shipman, the dean of American women landscape architects.

Divided into garden rooms, the Wild Garden is the site of a winding, hundred-yard "Iris Walk" that displays a newly updated collection of named Louisiana irises.

The original iris planting was established by Caroline Dormon, a prolific writer, multimedia artist, botanist, forester and conservationist, but few irises at Longue Vue today can be traced back to that era. The updated collection includes not only newer registered hybrids, but probably the most extensive collection of species forms in one location in the country, donated by Benny Trahan of Slidell.

Louisiana irises are found in various spots in New Orleans’ 1300-acre City Park, but are concentrated in the New Orleans Botanical Garden, the New Orleans Museum of Art’s Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden, and the plantings along Big Lake near the Museum.

The irises are scattered among the diverse plantings in the 12-acre Botanical Garden. Many clusters are old and unlabeled but new cultivars have been added. As part of the Garden’s highly varied and beautifully maintained plantings, the irises do not jump out like they do elsewhere. They provide a view that may be more typical of a home landscape and suggestive of how they can be incorporated into the visitor’s garden.

The five acre Sculpture Garden was opened in November 2003 and was designed to display a permanent collection of over 50 sculptures by twentieth- and twenty-first century American, European, Latin American, Israeli and Japanese artists.

The lagoon in the garden, part of an extensive system that meanders throughout City Park, was originally landscaped with I. pseudacorous. Katrina virtually destroyed them, one of its few positive contributions, and paved the way for the irises rightfully entitled to grace a beautiful New Orleans garden.

Big Lake is also a part of the City Park lagoon system. In the last several years, the periphery was developed with paved walking areas and other features. Large swaths of Louisiana irises are now massed near the edges in several spots. In bloom, they cannot be ignored.

The watery edges of the City Park lagoons are visually the perfect spot to display Louisiana irises. Sadly, the lagoons are connected to the brackish Lake Pontchartrain. When a storm surge pushes in from the Lake, the rise in salinity can damage the irises. After Katrina, a freshwater pump was installed to ameliorate the salty water, but time will tell if Louisianas can grow in a spot that looks like home but may not taste the same. Many have survived so far.

Beyond New Orleans’ major public gardens, Louisiana iris plantings have been completed at Heritage Park in Slidell, Joe Brown Park in New Orleans East, and Brechtel Park on the West Bank. The Town of Jean Lafitte about twenty miles South has a number of places to see Louisiana irises, but the main show there is a boardwalk out into the swamp among the native stands of I. giganticaerulea, growing like they used to throughout the area.

New Orleans may not be the Iris Center of the Universe, but with the developments of the last five years, it is in the hunt.

Spuria Irises

I wonder how many iris lovers even know what a spuria iris is. To go a little further, I am certain that very few people that profess to know what an iris is, have even heard the term spuria irises. So I want to try to enlighten you, as iris lovers, about some of the truly wonderful traits of this family of irises.

First, spurias look different than the bearded irises. They don't have beards. The tall stately foliage resembles cattails. Here comes the first wonderful trait, they don't go over in the wind. They are fantastic as cut flowers. When cut in bud stage, the florets will open in perfect sequence. In some parts of the US, florists are starting to use them in arrangements.

The basic culture for spurias is dry ground or no wet feet except in rainy periods. Spurias will grow just about everywhere in the US. They will grow from the deep south to the farther reaches of Canada. They also will certainly grow on the west coast and east coast. In the cooler climates they will bloom after the tall bearded irises. In the warmer states like southern Texas, Arizona, and California they will often bloom with the tall bearded irises.

Spurias love fertilizer. The only blends that they don't like are very heavy nitrogen blends like lawn fertilizer. They love a dressing of well rotted manure. I shutter to think what will happen if that is tried on bearded irises.

Now for the best culture topic of all. Spurias do not need to be split for years. Just leave them in place for 10, even 15 years. Take that, you tall bearded irises.

Spurias are shipped or divided in the fall months. Cold climates should plant in August. Warmer climates will be shipped in September or even October. Spuria rhizomes should never dry out. Most shippers will place rhizomes in a moist paper towel and ship them in plastic baggies. If you are transplanting, put the plants in a bucket of water with a few inches of water in it until you can plant them. They should be planted as soon as possible.

Landscapers are slowly discovering spurias, but the problem here, is just finding enought stock for large projects. There is not a better landscape iris on earth. Period.

OK, I have told you about spuria irises. If you do not grow them at all, hurry you need to try some this year. If you have some now, you need more. Finally, please join the Spuria Iris Society to keep up with what's going on in the world of spurias.

Thank you for listening. Jim Hedgecock Incoming Spuria Iris Society President. Photo Credit: Tahonta's Shadow by Jim Hedgecock

Opening Eyes to New Iris Introductions.

The year was 2008 and it seems every year I fall in love with a new iris, especially if I attend the American Iris Society National Convention for the year. This year was no exception as the new iris to catch my eye was ‘Have A Goodun’ by Tom Burseen. What did this iris have over the hundreds of other cultivars and seedlings? It had presence. With an average stalk and height, compared with others around it, no matter the garden, ‘Have A Goodun’ caught you and drug you across the garden to look at it. Was it perfect? Well no, but it had that X-factor for me that I had to have it. Since that fateful day I received ‘Have A Goodun’ for my collection I was impressed. Within two months of planting two rhizomes I had ten increases and by spring I had enough to produce 8 stalks. No matter where or how I used it in hybridizing I got a pod with greater than normal number of seeds. While other tall bearded iris fell in the heavy down pours, I lost a flower or two from ‘Have A Goodun’. With the heat and humidity of summer and the onslaught of leaf spot ‘Have A Goodun’ was barely affected for I had put sand around it thinking it was from Texas and needed the extra drainage. Whatever the reason this is an iris that will stay in my collect for many years to come. I have learned from this experience it just might be better to spend that money on new introductions as they come available for the improvements in color and disease resistance.

A Hollywood Hybridizer

By Andi Rivarola

Being a lover of Spuria irises, I finally picked up the booklet The Eric Nies Chronicle, published by the American Iris Society, compiled and written by Mr. Nies’ granddaughter, Nancy Nies.

What a wonderful collection of stories and life experiences about someone so recognizable, but yet very much unknown to iris lovers of my generation. Reading it gave me a sense of loss in a way, for the great man, and for the inability to say, “Mr. Nies, I have a question for you about those Spurias you created.” How many other early manipulators of iris genes (artists, really) were out there, whose dedicated lives are lost, except in the memory of early American gardeners (few of whom) are still with us?

One of the most surprising pieces of information about Eric Nies is that he lived and created his irises right here in my town, Los Angeles. Secondly, what came to mind while reading this Chronicle is, why is it that Spurias have not taken off in popularity given the amount of work and dedication from early hybridizers? I don’t really know.

Eric Nies was born in 1884 at Saugatuck, Michigan, and was one of thirteen children. His parents were immigrants from Holland. In 1913 he moves with his family to Los Angeles. He starts his hybridizing work in 1920 (what about this year, that so many important events start surfacing in the world). As a supervisor of an elementary school’s agricultural center in Los Angeles, Mr. Nies first comes into contact with Spuria irises.

“During his life time, my grandfather,” says Nancy Nies, “received numerous awards and honors for his iris, on both the local and national levels. These included eleven Honorable Mentions and four Awards of Merit from the American Iris Society. One of the latter, presented to ‘Bronzspur,’ had the distinction of being the first AIS Award of Merit ever given to a Spuria; another, awarded to ‘Orchid Sprite,’ was the first AIS Award of Merit ever won by a Pacific Coast native iris.”

The chronology presented by Nancy Nies says that in 1933 Eric Nies joined the AIS, helps establish the Southern California Iris Society (still functioning today), and the Annual Hollywood Iris Show. Imagine that, an iris show around the glamour and seduction of those Hollywood days. Because he lived in the heart of Hollywood, entertainment stars were part of his iris-fan base and more so, after he named at least one of his bearded irises after one of them. The Hollywood Citizen News for April 21, 1944 reads, “Iris Named For Actress.”

I was also happy to read that as late as 2002 the Nies/Walker Spuria cultivar, ‘Driftwood’ received the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.

Ironically, the American Iris Society awarded the Hybridizer’s Medal to Eric Nies in 1952. He never knew he had received it though since he died in January of the same year.

Marion Walker, who took over some of Eric Nies’ work after his passing, said in the 1952 Bulletin, “His interest in botany led to his becoming an outstanding landscape architect. He had an exceptional love of beautiful flowers and plants, especially the delicately textured ones such as the bearded iris.”

From the Bulletin of the American Iris Society #141 (April 1656) 36-39: “Although the catalogues of one of the pioneer commercial growers in Southern California, Mrs. Jennett Dean of the Moneta Gardens, offered Spuria hybrids for use in perennial borders, it was not until a chance break caught the attention of Eric Nies in the late 1930s and started him on a serious breeding program, that interest in this member of the iris family was revived. The species ochroleuca had been planted generously in home gardens and estates for its foliage accent and wealth of bloom in season, but the use of the newer hybrids has been a slow but steady climb into popularity. At present time Spurias are being used in planted coves along the freeways leading to the heart of Los Angeles, and in greater number in the parks and in private gardens. Interest in them has spurred the members of the Southern California Iris Society to grow all the available species in that section… The standard of perfection as set by Eric Nies for himself and now followed by others has improved the offerings.”

Eric Nies goal was to develop, “a well-formed, reasonably tall blue Spuria,” that he could use as a landscape architect, but that didn’t deter him from producing and introducing was seems to be the first brown Spuria, ‘Bronzspur.’

Marion Walker wrote as part of a published obituary, “He was looking forward to 1956, when the AIS [National Convention] is scheduled for Los Angeles, with the keenest anticipation, and had been exhorting the local growers to place more emphasis in their plantings on the native varieties for that event.”

Hope these few glimpses of this pioneer of our iris world will inspire you to read more about him or earlier iris hybridizers. Information about The Eric Nies Chronicle may be found through the Spuria Iris Society. Other Historic Chronicles may be obtained from the Historic Iris Preservation Society.

Note 1: I could not find original pictures of Eric Nies introductions. If you have any, would share them with us? Thank you.

Note 2: For AIS history buffs: The only time an AIS National Convention was held in Los Angeles, was in 1956.

Irises you don't suppose to grow

I don’t know about you, but ever since I started growing irises it’s been my dream to grow as many types of irises as I could. I specially like MTBs (Miniature Tall Bearded), Species, Louisiana and Siberian irises. I have tried to grow these over the years, but with a lot of difficulty in my Southern California garden. I wish I could grow more.

I was in a daze when I saw Miniature Tall Bearded iris ‘Sailor’s Dream’ (Kenneth Fisher, R. 2004) at the Portland’s 2006 National Convention of the American Iris Society. It was blooming profusely at every site I visited, it had healthy leaves, and the color was extremely nice – a deep wisteria blue that really caught my eye.

Below, MTB 'Monty Duane.'

As Portland was my first National Convention, I was making excuses to the other closing-program dinner guests on why I voted for ‘Sailor’s Dream’ to win the Franklin Cook Medal Cup. “Very rarely,” they said, “would a MTB win.” Anyway, we all laughed about it, but to my surprise and that of the other dinner guests ‘Sailor’s Dream’ won The Franklin Cook Memorial Cup for 2006. That the iris I voted for won this award was an unbelievable feeling. Upon returning home I ordered it immediately, but to this day it has never bloomed. Still, this story is not really about ‘Sailor’s Dream,’ (I like to believe that some day it will bloom so I still grow it) it is about the other MTBs I grow and which bloom every year.

Is there a scientific reason why they bloom in my area? If there’s one, I don’t really know. I only know that everyone else tells me they don’t suppose to. So, here are the MTBs that do well: ‘Monty Duane’ (Wyss 2000); ‘Missus Bee’ (Bunnell 2003); ‘Bangles’ (Lynda Miller 1995); ‘Ozark Dream’ (Fisher 1992) and ‘Little Bay Denoc’ (Fred Williams 1978). Proud to grow them in Los Angeles, where they don’t suppose to grow.

Next time, I will tell you about the Siberian irises that don’t suppose to grow in my area either.

Below MTB 'Little Bay Denoc.'

Note 1: From The American Iris Society: The Franklin Cook Memorial Cup is awarded annually during The American Iris Society’s national meeting. All introduced irises seen growing and in bloom in the official tour gardens of the meeting are eligible for the Cook Memorial Cup, except irises originated within the host region for that year’s national meeting or originated by a hybridizer whose garden is included on the official garden tour, regardless of its location. Irises considered need not be an official "Guest" iris. Each registrant may vote for only one variety and the Franklin Cook Memorial Cup is awarded to the iris receiving the greatest number of votes.

Note 2: Sailor’s Dream has earned the following American Iris Society Awards: Honorable Mention 2006; Award of Merit 2008, Williamson-White Medal, 2010.