"Talking Irises" TALL BEARDED IRISES & COMPLEMENTARY COLOR SCHEMES--Planning your iris bed

by Susanne Holland Spicker

"Gardening is such an incredible joy, and the more successful you are as a gardener, the more enjoyable your gardening becomes" Mike McGroarty

'WINNING EDGE'  Ghio   1997   36"   ML

Planning irises in complementary color schemes has been an enjoyable production in progress in my flower beds. The beds have transitioned from a few irises in the garden in 1995, to presently 15 to 45 favorite varieties in each of the 14 iris beds throughout the yard. I couldn't have imagined how smitten I would become with these tall beauties back then, each year exclaiming I didn't have room for one more. I now have over 300 named cultivars, and I definitely don't have room for more! To keep my beds organized, I make a collage of irises in the bed, with favorites I want to add. This method works best for me, and it may work for you.

The color palette for my pastel bed is one of my favorites:

(From upper, row 1, l-r) 'BUBBLY MOOD' Ghio '84, 'BUBBLING OVER' Ghio '82, 'GOODNIGHT MOON' Schreiner '95, 'RUFFLED BALLET' Roderick '75, 'ROLE REVERSAL' Ghio '10, 'RHINELANDER' Schreiner '06 (row 2) 'PRETTY GENEROUS' Innerst '04, 'WINNING EDGE' Ghio '97, 'SKATING PARTY' Gaulter '83, 'EMBRACE ME' Van Liere '08, 'ASCII ART' Moores '97, 'GLOWING SMILE' Hager '01, (row 3) 'SOCIETY PAGE' Ghio '00, 'BUBBLING WAVES' Ghio '06, 'GOING DUTCH' Van Liere '09, 'QUEEN'S CIRCLE' Kerr '00, 'LACED COTTON' Schreiner '80, 'ELECTRABRITE' Brown '83, (row 4) 'POND LILY' Jones '95, 'COMING UP ROSES' Gatty '92, 'ABOVE THE CLOUDS' Schreiner '01, 'GLOBAL CROSSING' Van Liere '12, 'ELISA RENEE' Gaulter '93, 'MARY FRANCES' Gaulter '73

When planning out an iris bed, these are things that have worked best for me to achieve maximum success:  

• What look do I want to accomplish?
• What color schemes do I want to have?
• What is the bloom time of the iris and companion plants?
• What companion plants will go best with my irises, giving a variety of texture, shape, and size?
• Which plants need to be moved or replaced?
• Mapping out the bed and recording it in a notebook and computer.



'GLOBAL CROSSING'  (Van Liere '12   36"   M)

This long wrap-around porch pastel bed now has 45 different tall bearded irises.

'EVENING TIDINGS', 'GLOBAL CROSSING', 'BUBBLING WAVES', 'LACY DAY', 'INTO THE NIGHT', 'EMBRACE ME'

'DESIGNER LABEL' (Ghio '03  38"  M-L)

'SWEET SERENADE', 'RUFFLED BALLET', 'SOCIETY PAGE', 'CROWNED HEADS', 'HEATHERIDGE', 'ELECTRABRITE'

'BUBBLING OVER' (Ghio   '82   36"  M)

'LACY DAY', 'BUBBLING WAVES', 'GLOBAL CROSSING'

'BUBBLING WAVES' (Ghio 36"  VE-E)

'OVERJOYED' (Gatty by Keppel '94   35"  M)

Irises come in a vast array of colors, multiply annually, and are easy to divide or move; so if the outcome isn't what you had in mind, changes can easily be made. I am always refining my beds. This is where a map of your irises is so beneficial.

Whether you're a beginning iris gardener, or a seasoned iris lover with many years of growing under your belt, seeing success in your garden is always exciting and very rewarding—I eagerly look forward to spring!

What kind of iris gardener are you?  Do you plan your beds out?  I'd love to hear what you have to say!

"Talking Irises" TALL BEARDED IRIS--FIRST-YEAR BLOOMS, 2014

'PARISIAN DAWN' Keppel 2006

By Susanne Holland Spicker

The 2014 TALL BEARDED IRIS SEASON was the best for me in recent memory. I divided nearly all of my irises last year, and wasn't expecting a banner year, but their increase and bloom was more prolific than I have seen for several years. The weather in the top of Utah was ideal for them to establish a good root system in the fall, and the hard freezes in late winter and early spring came before there was damage to the buds, as had been the case the past few years. The new rhizomes I planted had a 95% bloom success--unheard of in my experience with new plantings. Although I was very happy with these new irises, sometimes first-year blooms aren't indicative of what kind of plant it turns out to be. I usually need to wait a few years to know important factors such as hardiness, vigor, and dependability in bloom. These are some of my favorite first-year blooms in 2014.

'PHOTOGENIC' Ghio 2006

'GOING DUTCH' Van Liere 2009

'RHINELANDER' Schreiner 2006

'LENTEN PRAYER' Schreiner 1998

'ABOUT TOWN' Blyth 1997

'PRETTY GENEROUS' Innerst 2004

'CHRISTMAS EVE' Van Liere 2010

'DESIGNER LABEL' Ghio 2003

'QUEEN'S RANSOM' Van Liere 2012

'TICKLE ME PINK' Van Liere 2011

'GYPSY LORD' Keppel 2006

'SISTERHOOD' Van Liere 2011

'DREAM TEAM' Johnson 2007

'BUBBLE BUBBLE' Ghio 2005

'ROLE REVERSAL' Ghio 2010

'LEMON CLOUD' Painter 2008

'GITANO' Keppel 2007

'ROSY FORECAST' Williamson 2010

'WINNING EDGE' Ghio 1997

'WEARING RUBIES' Blyth 2000

'SOUTHERN MORNING' Metler 2011 

'MARCHING TO ZION' Metler 2011

'OVERJOYED' Gatty by Keppel 1994

'ADOREE'  Blyth 2006

'FLORENTINE SILK' Keppel 2005

'EVENING TIDINGS' Schreiner 2009

'GOLDEN PANTHER' Tasco 2000

'ARISTOCRACY' Keppel 2006

'RED SKIES' Ghio 2007

First-year blooms are always exciting; it's much

like  Christmas  morning  to  go  out  and  see a 

new cultivar in bloom for the first time. Time will

tell if these new irises stand the test of time

for good increase, dependability and hardiness--

I hope so, they were beautiful this year.

I'd love to hear about a favorite first-year bloom 

you've had.  

Have any disappointed you with their vigor or 

dependability?