California Dreaming 4--Superstition Iris Garden

By Bryce Williamson

Both Phil Williams and I woke up early Tuesday morning, knowing we had a long day ahead of us. The Best Western did provide a breakfast, saving us the time to go look for a place in Merced. And then it was on the road again for the drive up to Superstition Iris Garden in Cathey’s Valley.

On March 22, Superstition received 5.21" of rain with 3.25" of it coming in a one-hour long, vicious thunderstorm. There was a lot of damage in the local area with many bridges washed away. As a result, we could not take Old Highway into the garden, but had to use School House Road instead; however, before we went to the garden, I wanted to see the Detwiler Fire damage so we drove up to the bustling metropolis of Mariposa. Ironically last year’s fire has resulted in wonderful wildflower bloom this spring.

Because Superstition grown medians and arilbreds along with tall bearded, there was a lot to see in the garden. As always, Rick Tasco and Roger Duncan were gracious hosts, letting us first wander around in the named varieties rows before we walked the seedlings with Rick.

Rick Tasco and Roger Duncan

I was especially excited to see some fine arilbred irises:

'Dragon's Eye' (Tasco 2015)

'On the Web' Tasco 2019

'Glow of Love' Tasco 2019

'Vivid Dream' Tasco 2019

This is one of Rick's arilbred medians and the second arilbred median is his Warrior Prince:

'Lucky Dragon' Tasco 2019

'Warrior Prince' (Tasco 2015)

In the named tall bearded iris beds, I liked:

'Ayes Alert' (Burseen 2015)

'Brighton Beach' (M. Sutton 2017)

'Desert Paradise' (Dash 2017)

'Good Morning Beautiful' (Stanton 2012)

Then Rick and Roger walked us through the seedlings and some have been named since I wrote this blog; there was more TB bloom there since the plants had gone into the ground earlier:

Boundless Beauty' Tasco 2019

Tasco14.TB.05.01

Tasco 15.TB.05.09

The additional stock of Rick's 2018 introductions were also by the seedling beds:

'Ice Cream Sundae' Tasco 2018

'Secret Delight' Tasco 2018

'Spring Elegance' Tasco 2018

When we were ready to leave, Roger provided wonderful directions to John and Leslie Painter’s garden by Lake Barryessa. Those great directions saved at least a hour of time on that leg of the on the road trip.
 

Superstition has a printed catalogue and it can be obtained by sending $1.50 to Superstition Iris Garden, 2536 Old Highway, Cathey's Valley, California 95306 for a two year subscription. They can also be reached on Facebook or in email at randrcv@sti.net.

TALL BEARDED IRIS, MY FAVORITE "BLACK" IRISES

BY DAWN MUMFORD

First of all the term "black' must be explained.  Black iris are those iris that are so color saturated that they appear nearly black to the naked eye.  If you are looking for a black iris that has no underlying color in it you will be disappointed.  Once you get sunlight on a so-called "black" you will see other colors within it.  Cameras often see colors that the naked eye didn't at first pick up.  There are blue-blacks, purple-blacks, and even red-blacks. 

This photograph was taken June 1st 2009  in our garden at peak bloom. 

In the photograph above you will notice pockets of very dark color.  Those are my "blacks".  I think they add nice contrast to the surrounding iris.  You can create striking beds by planting black with white, black with red or orange, black with yellow and black with pink.  

'Here Comes the Night'   (Schreiner, 2009) 

This was probably my favorite black iris this year.  This iris wouldn't be nearly as interesting if it didn't have that striking beard. 

 A friend on Facebook asked me to describe the color of the beard.  The beard is dark purple where it touches the falls but quickly changes to almost white with a dusting of yellow gold on the tips of the beard. 

'Swazi Princess'  (Schreiner, 1978)

These flowers are in our front landscape.  Note how 'Swazi Princess' makes the pinks look lighter and vice-versa.  Next to 'Swazi Princess' are pink lupines and the tall bearded iris 'Beverly Sills'.  

'Coal Seams'  (Schreiner, 2013) 

This is the first year for this one to bloom in our garden so I don't know if it will always have all three blooms open on the same stem at the same time or not. This is a new addition to the "black" arena.  It is an all over black self with just a few light white stripes parallel to the beard. 

'Starring' (Ghio, 2000) 

Here is an example of very dark red/black in the falls of this iris.  This amoena,(white tinted standards with colored falls) really catches your eye. 

 This iris won the HM in 2002, the AM in 2004 and the WM in 2007.    

'Midnight Oil' (Keppel, 1997) 

This iris really looks very dark in the patch.  It has attractive grape colored beards.  It is a child of the Dykes Medal winner 'Before the Storm'. This one is fragrant too. Because of the substance, this iris seems to absorb the light instead of reflecting it.  That makes it appear darker. 

'Before The Storm' (Innerst, 1989)
This beauty is a child of 'Superstition' X 'Raven's Roost' .  I grow both of the parent plants and am not surprised that they made such an attractive child.  This iris won HM 1991, AM 1993, Wister Medal 1995  and the coveted Dykes Medal in 1996.  

'Hello Darkness' (Schreiner, 1992)

This one is another purple/black self. The beard is dark purple but the falls are much darker.  I love the form and substance.  When it was introduced in 1992 it was said to be the biggest black flower and the most black.  I think others have surpassed it in color since then. It won HM 1994, and Walther Cup in 1994, the  AM in 1996, the Wister Medal in 1998 and the Dykes Medal in 1999.   

'Study In Black' (Plough, 1967)

It is a deep red-black self with beard brown tipped blue violet.   This is one of the irises that is considered a historic.  "Historic" means it has been 30 years or longer since it was introduced.  

'Superstition' (Schreiner, 1977)
Another historic, this iris opens three flowers at a time.  It has a hint of maroon.  My camera lightened it up quite a bit. We bought a new much nicer camera this month and so next year I hope to get better resolution and truer colors.

'Night Ruler' (Schreiner, 1990)
This iris is a deep inky purple with a pervasive black sheen.  I love its form and ruffling.  This is an outstanding iris that will always have a place in our garden. 

 'All Night Long' (Duncan, 2005) 
  This iris is typical of the new improved blacks. This is a cross between 'Hollywood Nights' and 'Black Tie Affair'.  The iris to the right is 'Sweet Serenade'.  

'Blackalicious' (Schreiner, 2006) 
'Before the Storm' is one of the parents.  Award of Merit in 2010.


All of you in the southern hemisphere can enjoy your flowers right now and smell their fragrance.  Here in the northern hemisphere, we can only enjoy ours by going back through pictures and remembering how stunning they were and what a wonderful hobby growing irises is. 

Do you have black iris in your garden?  What colors do you like to pair them with?  I would love to hear from you.  

For more black irises, visit Mike Unser's post on historic blacks here.