The American Iris Society Announces the 2023 Wister Medal Winners

 'BLACK LIPSTICK' - 'ROYSTON RUBIES' -

'CHIHUAHUAN DESERT'

The Wister Medal is restricted to tall bearded (TB) irises. It is named in honor of John C. Wister (1887-1982). Three medals are awarded each year. Previous awards winners can be found at https://wiki.irises.org/Main/InfoAwards.

John C. Wister led the organizing meeting that created the American Iris Society and became its first president, a position he held for fourteen years. He guided the Society through its formative years. He was widely recognized as a man of rare management skills, leadership ability, and the highest ethical standards. R. S. Sturtevant wrote of him: "Probably few current members realize that the AIS started through the efforts and initiative of one man, John C. Wister...."

Tall bearded iris 'BLACK LIPSTICK'
photo by Jeanette Graham

'Black Lipstick' (Keith Keppel, R. 2015). Seedling# 09-104A. Height 35 in. (89 cm). Early midseason bloom. Standards black-purple; style arms dark purple (46-J-12); falls black; beards solid dark blue. Seedling# 04-95A: ('Oreo' x 'Hello Darkness') X seedling# 01-37B: ('Tangled Web' x seedling# 94-54B: (seedling# 90-82E, Oreo' pod parent sibling x 'Storm Track')). Introduced by Keith Keppel Iris in 2016.

'Royston Rubies'  (Adam Cordes, R. 2016). Seedling# C51-8. Height 32 in. (81 cm). Late midseason bloom. Standards old mauve; style arms same, honey-gold sides, lavender lip, crests toasted-brown; falls dark ruby red, black veneer overlay to the ¼˝old mauve edge, occasional slight lavender line at end of beard, faint white rays at sides of beard, mustard-orange base on shoulders; beards mustard-orange, lavender base. 'Prestige Item' X 'Cranberry Sauce'. Introduced by Mid-America Gardens in 2017.

Tall bearded iris 'CHIHUAHUAN DESERT'
photo by Howie Dash

'Chihuahuan Desert' (Howard Dash, R. 2015). Seedling# ADG 11-02-12. Height 37 in. (94 cm), Early to midseason bloom. Standards and style arms white; falls tan-violet veining over white base; beards orange, hairs based orange, tips yellow. 'Zesting Lemons' X Kelly seedling PFM-09-1: ('Pennant Fever' x 'Machismo'). Picacho Mountain Iris 2016. 

The World of Irises blog will be posting classification medal winners as soon as the hybridizers are notified. The entire list of winners, including Award of Merit and Honorable Mention, will be published on the AIS website, the AIS Encyclopedia, and later in the AIS Bulletin, IRISES.

The American Iris Society Announces the 2021 Wister Medal Winners

'FOOTBALL HERO' - 'DON'T DOUBT DALTON'

'BELLE FILLE' - 'VOLCANIC GLOW' 

'BLUEBIRD OF HAPPINESS' - 'DON'T STOP BELIEVING' 

The Wister Medal is restricted to tall bearded (TB) irises. It is named in honor of John C. Wister (1887-1982). Three medals are awarded each year. Editor’s Note: Due to the pandemic last year, the American Iris Society Board of Directors suspended garden awards. As a result, and for only this year, six medals will be award in this area. Previous awards winners can be found at https://wiki.irises.org/Main/InfoAwards.

John C. Wister led the organizing meeting that created the American Iris Society and became its first president, a position he held for fourteen years. He guided the society through its formative years. He was widely recognized as a man of rare management skill, leadership ability, and the highest ethical standards. R. S. Sturtevant wrote of him: "Probably few current members realize that the AIS started through the efforts and initiative of one man, John C. Wister...."

'FOOTBALL HERO' (Lynda Miller)

'Football Hero' (Lynda Miller, R. 2014). Seedling# 8010A. TB, 36" (91 cm). Midseason bloom. Standards butter yellow; style arms same, accented violet; falls plum-purple, pale smoky orchid edged; beards gold; slight musky fragrance. 'Hoosier Dome' X 'Saturn'. Salmon Creek 2015.

'DON'T DOUBT DALTON' (Tom Burseen)

'Don't Doubt Dalton' (Tom Burseen, R. 2014). Seedling# 011-297A. TB, 35" (89 cm). Early to late bloom. Standards pure white, red-purple random splattering; style arms white, washed gold; falls pure white, yellow-gold washed hafts, random dark purple splatters; beards poppy orange (RHS 32A), tattered and feathered white horns, gold stems; flared and ruffled; slight sweet fragrance. 'Miles Keith' X seedling# 09-79: (seedling# 07-167: ('Sammie's Jammies' x 'Enchanter') x 'McSeedman Sees Red'). Burseen 2015.

'BELLE FILLE' (Marky Smith)

'Belle Fille' (Marky Smith, R. 2011). Seedling 08-05B. TB, 34" (86 cm). Early to late bloom. Standards hyacinth violet (RHS 87A), primrose ruffled edge and base; style arms cream edged and rimmed yellow, crests lilac touched yellow; falls Vatican purple (83A), thin cream edge, cream white area surrounding beard, rudimentary luminata cream veining just below white heart, surrounded in turn by 1/4" bright yellow ring bleeding out to brown shoulder, small white dart below beard; beards white base, hairs tipped yellow at end becoming solid golden poppy-orange (25A) in throat; heavily ruffled, luminata pattern; pronounced sweet fragrance. Seedling 06-23L. Salmon Creek 2015.

'VOLCANIC GLOW' (Keith Keppel)

'Volcanic Glow' (Keith Keppel, R. 2011) Seedling 05-78B. TB, 36" (91 cm), Midseason bloom. Standards aureolin (M&P 10-L-2), central area flushed cedarwood (6-G-10); style arms aureolin, slight cedarwood flush; falls Zanzibar red (8-L-5), velvety wash, narrow aureolin edge; white heart and dart below beard, heart edged bright golden lemon (9-L-2/3); beards white base, tips golden lemon; luminata. 'Montmartre' X 'Lip Service'. Keppel 2012.

'BLUEBIRD OF HAPPINESS' (Paul Black)

'Bluebird Of Happiness' (Paul Black, R. 2011). Seedling# P218B. TB, 45" (114 cm). Midseason to very late bloom. Standards dark base and midribs blending to mid blue edges, darker blue textured veins over upper 2/3; style arms mid blue; falls mid blue fading to pale blue, darker at edge, mid blue textured veins; beards orange; pronounced sweet fragrance. Blyth seedling# N24-5, 'Blue Rising' sibling X 'Paul Black'. Mid-America 2012.

'DON'T STOP BELIEVING' (Thomas Johnson)

'Don't Stop Believing' (Thomas Johnson, R. 2013) Seedling TA80A. TB, 42 (107 cm). Late bloom. Standards and style arms clear mid pink; falls milk glass white, pink hafts and edge; beards salmon-pink in middle, lilac-blue end; sweet fragrance; ruffled; lightly laced. Seedling TW3A: ('Ballet Royale' x 'Corps de Ballet') X 'Secret Affair'. Mid-America 2013.

The World of Irises blog will be posting classification medal winners as soon as the hybridizers are notified. The entire list of winners, including award of merit and honorable mention, will be published in the AIS website, the AIS Encyclopedia, and later in the AIS Bulletin, IRISES.

The American Iris Society Announces the 2021 Dykes Medal Winners

'DARING DECEPTION' and ‘RECKLESS ABANDON’ 

First awarded in 1927, the Dykes Medal is the highest award of the American Iris Society (AIS). It is named for William Rickatson Dykes (1877-1925), and is awarded to no more than one iris per year.* Irises are eligible as a Dykes medal candidate for three years following the winning of a classification medal. Only AIS registered judges may vote.

*Editor’s Note: Due to the pandemic last year, the American Iris Society Board of directors suspended garden awards. As a result, and only for this year, two medals will be awarded in each area. Previous awards winners can be found at https://wiki.irises.org/Main/InfoAwards.

Tall bearded iris 'DARING DECEPTION' (Thomas Johnson) image by Paul Black

'Daring Deception' (Thomas Johnson, R. 2012). Seedling#!TB127B. TB, 35" (89 cm). Midseason bloom. Standards white, light violet wash up midrib; style arms white; falls plush violet, wide white band, white spray on either side of beard; beards tangerine; slight fragrance. 'By Jeeves' X Blyth seedling# O77-A: ('Hold My Hand' x 'Brave Face'). Mid-America 2012. 

Tall bearded iris ‘RECKLESS ABANDON’ (Keith Keppel)

'Reckless Abandon' (Keith Keppel, R. 2009). Seedling 04-147A. TB, 38" (97 cm). Midseason bloom. Standards center sulphur to citron yellow (M&P 10-J-1/2) changing to warm white texture veined yellow toward outer portion, narrow 1/8" dandelion (9-L-4/5) edge; crests dandelion (9-L-4); falls burgundy black (much deeper than 56-H-12), large central area white to cream strongly veined burgundy black; beards solid deep chrome to cadmium yellow (9-L-7/8). Blyth seedling L304-1, 'Platinum Class' sibling, X 'Pirate Ahoy'. Keppel 2010. 

The World of Irises blog will be posting classification medal winners as soon as the hybridizers are notified. The entire list of winners, including award of merit and honorable mention, will be published in the AIS website, the AIS Encyclopedia, and later in the AIS Bulletin, IRISES.

A Trip Down Memory Lane - Part Two

 By Maggie Asplet

Gosh, it seems like only yesterday and I was writing part one.  So, on with the rambles from an old lady.

Part one had us visiting other places and not just spending all our time at Mid-America Iris Gardens.  Mind you, we didn't mind not leaving, but just so many irises to see and you can never look at them too many times.

A beautiful sunset from the paddock down the road from where Thomas & Kirk live.

(Paddock is Kiwi speak for field.)

The learning experiences, the sharing of knowledge, or perhaps I should say listening to the experts knowledge, is just so invaluable, and just shows you how "so little I know".

Something that some might thing rather trivial can be of great value to another person.  Photos do make explaining yourself to someone else so much easier.  During my last trip I took particular notice of the watering system Thomas used and what connections etc.

Watering system at Mid America

My watering system.  The fitting are much the same and I must say having the picture from my trip sure made it easier when trying to explain what I wanted.

For me, the very best part is learning from others.  Others that were always so willing to share their knowledge and experiences.  

First, I will look at the work of Lynda Miller and her work with MTB's.  They are stunning, just such a delicate bearded iris on such elegant stems.  I think it is fair to say that these are perhaps my favourite of the bearded irises.

Lynda discussing irises with Bailey (from Smokin Heights, Australia)

Here we have 3 of Lynda's seedlings

One of Lynda's registered MTB's.

A sight to behold, watching Keith Keppel evaluate his irises, then discussing with him why he makes the choices he does.  So very talented when it comes to hybridising.  Those years of experience tells him just what the outcome "may be" like, whereas I am still in the category of not knowing at all.

His iris patch, although it decreases in size each time I visit is just amazing.  If it were me having to make a choice of which seedling to keep, I think they would all be staying.

Photo on the left is Keith evaluating his seedlings

One the right you have Wendy (NZ) and Melissa (Australia) taking photos in Keith seedling patch.

I feel that to stop speaking about these different people is like not acknowledging them at all and there are still more that have had an impact on my irises and what I am trying to achieve.  I feel like there is a part 3 coming, as I would also like to just talk a little about attending the Regional meetings.

Each trip that I make, I always try and attend the Regional meeting in Oregon as there are many people there that I met in my first ever trip in 2015 when 23 New Zealanders went to Convention.  So many great friends were made.

From these friendships and from one person introducing another, we had the privilege of Patrick and Margaret Spence coming to our convention (Gisborne, New Zealand) in 2018.  Such a great time and then great to catch up with them again in the States.

While Margaret was here, she liked a top I had and wanted to know where I got it.  To cut the long story short, she now has a top the same as mine.  I had packed mine, never told Margaret - Guess what happened at the Regional Meeting.

I'm the one wearing glasses, oh we both are.  I'm the one with the cell phone in my hand.

This now leads me into the attending Regional Meetings and as this will be expanded quite a bit, I think this will be a good place to end.

SO, Part 3 it will be, covering some of the other amazing people and the Regional Meeting.

It is my great hope that 2022 will see the return of us from down under.

A Trip Down Memory Lane - Part One

By Maggie Asplet

Well, what else is there to say? COVID19, you have a lot to answer for, in particular my not being able to travel back to see my friends in Salem and Portland, Oregon for at least another year.

Usually, at this time, I am busy planning my next visit back, which is hard to believe especially the horrific weather conditions happening in Salem (and elsewhere) right now. It is hard to believe the destruction I am reading from Facebook posts.

So here we have it, unable to travel, so this is going to be a serious and humorous look at my last trip in May 2019.

One of the things none of you will be aware of is the time we leave home (midnight) to begin our travels, which leaves us sitting for hours waiting to check-in for our flight. Here I am with my traveling companion Wendy Begbie, who has the largest iris nursery in New Zealand.

Our first stop was Hawaii, meant to be for a 3 hour stop over, but due to a problem with our tickets we missed our next flight and to our shock (tongue in cheek) and horror, had to spend a night in Honolulu.  What are two girls to do but go and explore, which we did.  In the mall we came across this amazing stand where you get to make jandals (New Zealand name for flip flops) to your hearts desire.  Never seen anything like it before.  

It might look as though I didn't indulge, I did.  My granddaughter now has my pair.

Due to our unforeseen stayover, I think it is fair to say that a couple of nights in Honolulu would not go amiss, just to see the magnificent gardens and parks.

Taken at the airport, this is sure an indication of some stunning flora and fauna to see next time.

We finally arrive at Mid America Iris Garden and Sebright Gardens just about in the middle of the night.  First thing on the agenda is to wander arounds the house display gardens, and what a picture they always are and to heck the irises, here and down the road a couple of miles in the paddock (New Zealand term for field).

Irises at last

Beautiful display gardens

Irises, yes there were plenty of those.  Here is a selection of some of my favourites.  I guess this list would sure change once I can visit again.

These are some of the SDB irises that I used and will finally get to see what I have achieved this Spring (October 2021).  In the second set of photos the unnamed image is Basket of Goodies - Black '15.

One of the chores that I like to help with was feed the chickens and visiting the fantastic peacocks, especially the white ones - just stunning.

Sebright Chickens

By arriving prior to the main tall beard irises flowering, it gave us spare time to go visiting.  One of our favourite places is Schreiner's.  How can you not love their display gardens.  Just so inspiring with the companion planting and then returning when in full bloom.

Schreiner's Display Garden

The exterior of the delightful souvenir shop - check out just how the walls of the shop are made????

THEN, we finally get to full bloom season, what a picture the place is.  Given the size of the nurseries that Thomas has, when you see if for the first time, it is rather gobsmacking awesome.

As there is still so much to show you from a wonderful trip, I am going to finish this - part one - with a photo of us (the two New Zealanders with their Australian friends) enjoying the hospitality of Iris Royalty - to me they are.

We are very fortunate to have mentors like the Schreiner Family, Thomas Johnson, Paul Black, Keith Keppel.  Fabulous times together - now we wait until we can do this again.

Black is Dramatic!

By Mel Schiller

There is nothing more alluring and mysterious than a clump of black iris. Hearing the gasps from garden visitors as they gaze in disbelief upon the sultry beauty and pure elegance of these dark magical blooms, without a doubt the black iris are a firm favourite in our garden. Here are the top 8 black Tall Bearded Iris grown at Smokin Heights.

'Coal Face' (Grosvenor 2010)

Coming in at number eight is 'Coal Face,' hybridized by Graeme Grosvenor here in Australia. A fast and easy growing variety although it is not as dark as we would like.

'Black Is Black' (Schreiner 2010)

Seventh Place is 'Black Is Black,' hybridized by Schreiner's. Stunning depth of colour but not the fastest of growers, it also has purple based foliage.

'Obsidian' (M. Smith 2002)

In sixth place is 'Obsidian,' hybridized by Marky Smith. One of the first 'black' Iris that we grew, it will always have a spot in our garden!

'Visigoth' (M. Smith 2013)

Placing fifth is 'Visigoth,' another iris hybridized by Marky Smith. A newer variety here in Australia, it has thoroughly impressed us with its growth habits and depth of colour in the blooms.

Unfortunately there are no true black Iris on the market today, they will always have a blue, purple or even red undertone to the bloom. However, with extensive hybridizing we hope to achieve a true black Iris in the future.

'All Night Long' (Duncan 2005)

Beginning the top four we have 'All Night Long,' hybridized by the late Roger Duncan. One of our favourites in this colour class, it is a late bloomer that can handle the heat without burning towards the end of our iris season.

'Black Lipstick' (Keppel 2016)

In third place is 'Black Lipstick,' hybridized by Keith Keppel. It is very good parent that has given us some good seedlings. Amazing growth and bloom habits.

'Raven Girl' (Schreiner 2008)

Placing second is 'Raven Girl,' hybridized by Schreiner's, one of the best black Iris on the market. This variety has the best colour saturation of any black iris. This would be number one if it grew a bit quicker.

'Here Comes The Night' (Schreiner 2009)

And placing first is 'Here Comes The Night,' another hybridized by Schreiner's. Amazing growth and blooms habits coupled with depth of colour makes it a winning combination. Highly recommended for the lovers of black iris!

F79-1: (Raven Girl X Visigoth)

Finally we would like to show a sneak peak of one of our black seedlings currently under evaluation. This variety is looking very promising with great growth and bloom habits and gorgeous depth of colour.

Black iris create such a dramatic effect and really are a must have in the garden. Of course as with any variety of Bearded Iris some varieties grow better than others. We much prefer to grow the early to mid season bloom varieties as our hot scorching sun can scald and burn the bud in the socket before the bloom has a chance to open. Bailey and myself are working on black iris in our hybridizing efforts and of course black is Mel's favourite colour.....

We sincerely hope everyone keeps safe and healthy in these difficult times. Gardening is music to the soul--get out and enjoy it!

New cultivars for New Zealand

By Maggie Asplet

I felt it was time to write about what I am doing and perhaps even be brave enough to say what I would like to achieve with irises in New Zealand.  

I have for many years been very interested in hybridising but found it rather uninspiring to use any of the over 1,000 irises I had growing at home.  They were all considered old (bit like me, really).  Sadly, due to our quarantine conditions it makes it virtually impossible to import irises into NZ, a situation that has been in place since 2004.  

We have relied on the generosity of others, like Barry Blyth, or to make crosses in America then they send the seeds to us.  The other way we have gained new seeds have been through guest speakers bringing them to our annual conventions - Chad Harris, Patrick Spence, Andi Rivarola, and James Geditz all brought seed with them.  Sorry, I know I will have missed some others.  We here in NZ are very grateful to you all (even those not mentioned).

It is with thanks to the generosity of Thomas Johnson from Mid-America for putting up with me, that I can finally get to follow my passion of irises and develop brand new cultivars.  I must also thank Paul Black and Keith Keppel for allowing me to pick their brains as well as their plants.  I just hope they can continue to cope with my questions.

 The excitement of a parcel arriving from Mid-America - March 2019

And a little more exciting seeing the packets of seed within the parcel

This arrived in March 2019

A parcel with so much promise.

I will start with standard dwarf irises. I must say that I am really taken with these delightful irises.  They make such a wonderful front of border garden plant.  To be fair, I'm not even sure what I personally would like to achieve other than to start off at home here in NZ with some lovely new cultivars.  Bright colours and strong beards is what I will be looking for with future crosses.  So many possibilities as Paul Black would say.

During 2018 I used some of the following SDBs in my crosses, and later this year I will post what I consider my successful outcomes, and continue to grow them with the intention of introducing them.  Hopefully by 2022 we should have the first ready for the general public to purchase.  Sadly, I haven't been able to do any MDB crosses as they are usually finished by the time of my annual trip.  I am rather partial to these little cuties.

 'Alaia' - T Johnson '18

 'Kerpow' - T Johnson '18

 'Slightly Tipsy' - P Black '18

'Color' - P Black '18

I must say it is rather strange for me to spell color like this in the US English style.  I want to do - colour.  

This is only a small selection of the SDBs that I used, these were the most successful in the crosses, and now only time will tell just what they will look like.

I did dabble a little with MTBs, and a couple of IBs and BBs but will leave them for a later stage, as did more on my 2019 visit.

My main focus has been TBs, what I considered everyone's favourite, until my eyes opened so wide and I saw so many other beautiful irises and not just bearded ones.  However, now onto TB irises. 

For these I used a wide range of cultivars as I wanted to get a variety of different new irises into the crosses I have done.  Many were very successful (seed wise), again, we still have to wait and see what this has achieved.  Here is a few of what I used.

Black X10A, which if my notes are correct is a cross between 'Beauty Becomes Her' X 'Haunted Heart.'  I will confirm my notes with Paul this year.

'Oh What Fun' - T Johnson seedling now registered

'Apricot Smoothie' - T Johnson seedling now registered

'Call Me Maybe' - T Johnson '13

'Charmed I'm Sure' - P Black '14

'Solar Burst' - M Sutton '16

'Bedroom Romance' - P Black '16

'Another Suggestion' - K Keppel '16

And, then I did a whole lot of crosses, some very wide and probably will not produce well with what I think is perhaps my most favourite color pattern (at this stage), the luminatas.  Here is what I used.

'Belle Fille' - M. Smith '15

'Dialect' - T. Johnson '08

'Fancy Ideas' - K. Keppel '13

'Montmartre' - K. Keppel '08

This is only an insight as I have begun my journey with with seedlings from newer iris and is by no means all that I have used.  These images are of irises where I have had successful crosses and now plants are growing.

One of the seedling patches.  These are now well established and hopefully will be in flower this spring (October).

It is not long now and I will begin my journey back to Mid-America, where I hope to concentrate more on some end goals rather than crosses for crosses sake.  I particularly want to work with SDB and MTB irises this year.  I somehow think that the MTBs might just become my favourite bearded iris.

SO, if you have a dream, make sure you follow it.  It is so much easier to toil away on something that you have a passion for than not.  Later in the year, I will write a blog about some of the outcomes, but will probably only show you what I think is successful.

To American iris lovers, your spring has begun, enjoy your beautiful season.