Irises as Part of the Perennial Border

By Kevin Vaughn

I grew up in Massachusetts in the AIS of the 60’s and when we went on tours the iris were not grown like a corn field but rather as a part of a garden picture. 

'Cup Race' was one of the famous irises to come out of the Stedman Buttrick garden.
Image courtesy of Schreiner's Iris Gardens.

Some of these gardens were impressive beyond words.  Leola Fraim’s, Miriam Corey’s and Stedman Buttrick’s gardens were amazing collections of irises but housed with an equally impressive array of other perennials.  Almost every garden had three perennials that bloomed essentially along with the irises. Peonies, in shades of rose and pink, were used to complement the abundant blues of the irises, and were especially effective against clumps of blue Siberian irises.  The peonies were large enough that they could almost be used as shrubs in these borders.  Oriental poppies were very much the rage in that era. The Fischer Oriental poppies brought to the public a range of colors and forms that had not been seen previously.   Clean pinks, whites, and raspberry shades were now in the palette of colors available to the gardener in addition to the more vibrant (and less easy to use in landscaping) oranges and reds.   When the Countess von Stein Zeppelin visited from Germany, she was so impressed that she negotiated with Mr. Fischer for seeds and plants of hers so that she could develop her own strain for European gardeners. In Massachusetts, lupines were almost weeds (in fact they have naturalized in places in Maine) and the Russell strain offered clear colors and much better density of the flowers on the heads than in previous strains.  One plant that was popular in Massachusetts at that time was the gas plant (Dictamnus).  Mrs. Corey had actually crossed the dark rose and white strains and had several unusual shades of white veined pink and clear pink.  These are very solid plants. One of the fond memories of my youth in Massachusetts was blooming a seedling from Mrs. Corey’s strain and also lighting the gas with a match.  Odd that you don’t see them more used today.

Besides what we were observing at iris peak almost every one of these gardens featured daffodils and other spring bulbs, daylilies and towards the shadier portions, hosta.  In many cases, these “other companion plants” became interests of their owners too and almost everyone dabbed a little pollen from one of these groups as well as the iris.  Consequently, the collections of these plants were also state of the art.  A visit to these gardens even before or after iris peak was still a treat.

All of these yards had another component that most of us don’t think of as part of the garden: beautiful pristine lawns that bordered every bed.  Lawns are like the frame on the picture. They offer a refreshing green that cools the effect of the garden and sets off all the plantings.   In the Buttrick garden, these lawns flowed gently down to the banks of the scenic Concord River.

Polly Bishop, who was my mentor, had a lovely perennial garden, although not on the scale of the bigger gardens in Region 1.  She had crossed pansies with Johnny jump-ups to create a strain of hardy hybrids that self-sowed and blanketed the irises and bloomed throughout the year.  These were shallow-rooted plants and provided a living mulch around the bearded irises in the winter. In Polly’s garden, hardy succulents such a sedums and hens-and-chickens, were used to highlight the beds as well as many other rock garden type plants. These plants liked the same sharp-drained soil conditions as the bearded irises and added interest in both foliage and in flower.

Admittedly, that it is MUCH easier to manage irises in rows in terms of cultivation.  You can’t run a rototiller through a perennial border!  One only has to look at the magnificent display gardens at Schreiner’s here in Salem Oregon to see how effective irises can be as part of a much bigger picture.  I’m talking to myself somewhat here too.  Although I don’t do corn rows, I do use raised beds chiefly of bearded irises.  The spurias and Siberians are much more integrated into the borders and the Pacific Coast Natives are incorporated into the shade borders.  Now to work on those bearded beds Kevin!

Beautiful Gardens with Irises in Every Climate

By Renee Fraser

Sometimes I see a photo of an iris online and what catches my eye is not the flower, but the setting. I come back to these photos and study them, trying to figure out how to achieve that look in my own garden. Here today I have posted some garden photos from various iris growers around the Internet, so that you can dream a bit and get some inspiration for your own garden Eden.

Santa Cruz, California is a beautiful part of the state with a world-class university and spectacular views of the Pacific and the mountains. It gets decent rainfall for California. Sherry Austin has created a sprawling garden that features huge clumps of Pacific Coast and Tall Bearded Irises, many of the latter historics.  

In addition to being a talented gardener, Sherry is an accomplished musician who specializes in folk music. You can hear her for yourself by visiting the website of her group, Henhouse.  

In this photo, Sherry mixes New Zealand Flax, sedum, and Pacific Coast Irises in her landscape.

Below is Sherry's "vegetable" garden. Some of you may have "vegetable" gardens that look like this. From left to right: 'Indian Chief,' 'Whispering Falls', and in the back, 'Aureo variegata'. The roses are 'Fred Loads' and 'Sherry', and they are planted with Lavendula stoechys 'Otto Quast', dahlias, nepeta, sedum, and calendula. I love the wooden fence with the big clumps of irises.

And here it is from the other side:

Sherry has big plans for next year, with over a hundred new irises waiting to be planted. I can't wait to see the photos next year!

Joel Schaber is an artist and calligrapher who gardens in Boise, Idaho, and who chooses irises based on plant growth habit and beauty of foliage as well as scent and bloom. His gardens are meticulously planned, planted, and maintained. He has little time for poorly performing plants, as his garden attests. Here is Intermediate Bearded Iris 'Harmonium' with chives, ferns, hostas and the shasta daisy 'Becky' (not yet in bloom).

Here Joel uses 'Edith Wolford' (his favorite) with Asiatic lilies and California poppies.

A spectacular coordinated color display is created with 'Rhinelander', 'Paul Black', Centranthus ruber, and campanula.

In this bed, Joel uses (from left to right)  'Rhinelander', 'Sun Fun', 'World Premier', and 'Cheap Frills' in front, with 'Orinoco Flow' in the background. The companion plants include red Centranthus ruber (aka Jupiter's Beard or Valerian) and shasta daisy 'Becky'.  Can you believe the show put on by 'Orinoco Flow'?

The Centranthus ruber, California poppies, and shasta daisies tie Joel's beds together, and here they are joined by Siberian iris 'Caesar's Brother' and a yellow mini rose.

Pauline Lavigne has extensive cottage-style gardens with spectacular structures, all tied together with wide swaths of lawn and charming paths. Pauline gardens in Canada, where she grows peonies, daylilies, hostas, and irises, as well as countless other flowers and plants. The jaw-dropping photo below is what first brought her garden to my attention.

Here is the standard dwarf bearded iris 'Cherry Garden', which is the second iris to bloom in Pauline's garden, after iris cristata.  

Here's a different view of that first peony/iris combination. You can see the hostas in the background.

And this is another shot of the great garden iris 'Caesar's Brother', an exceptional siberian iris that will even grow in hot inland Southern California. What a color combination!

The last garden I'd like to share is in Minnesota. You may have seen Marte Hult's garden on this blog before. Marte's skill at layering plants en masse is only one of her gardening talents, though. She is also masterful at color coordination and contrast. Here she uses (what else?) 'Caesar's Brother' Siberian iris with masses of yellow historic tall bearded irises. (I really did not plan this PR for Caesar's Brother, I promise.)

This iris is the near-green 'County Cork' looking spectacular with chartreuse sedum.  

A cool pink tall bearded iris with chives for a fairy-tale effect.  

I hope you enjoyed these gardens as much as I did. Do you use irises in your garden, or do you plant them in separate beds? Leave a comment below, and good luck finding spots for all of those rhizomes appearing in the mail this summer and fall!

Louisiana Irises Found Growing Wild in NW Louisiana

by Ron Killingsworth

Ron Killingsworth standing in a clump of irises growing at the edge of Cross Lake just north of Shreveport, LA

Of course Louisiana irises grow wild in the wilds of Louisiana!  Especially in south Louisiana: in fact, they grow in the ditches down south.  Not many grow wild in the northwestern part of the state, though.

Several years ago a dear friend who lived in north Shreveport, LA, very near Cross Lake, called to tell me she had found some Louisiana irises growing in the wild in the backwaters of Cross Lake.  Cross Lake is a man-made lake that supplies the water for the city of Shreveport.  Sue and I put on our boots and joined our friend Lin Millar and we went deep into the woods behind her home into an area of overflow for the lake.  It appears to have been an old home site at one time.

We found many Louisiana irises blooming in the marshy lowlands.  Most of them appeared to be species irises as the blooms were not as large or well developed as most hybrid Louisiana irises.  We found many different colors but none of us are scientists so we were not able to determine if they are species or if so, which ones.

All of these irises were growing in areas that were either still standing in water or that would have been in water when the lake was higher.  Almost all of them were growing in very shaded areas that would have given them very little sunshine.  This probably explains why most of them had few blooms per bloom stalk.

We carefully collected samples of each of the irises we found and took them back to Lin's garden and to our gardens in Mooringsport, LA.  I now grow them in a large bed labeled "Cross Lake Irises".  They are doing fine in their new location.  Lin visited the area a couple of years later and the whole area had been clear cut and plowed up as though someone was getting ready to build a home there.  

When collecting irises growing in the wild we must certainly be careful to leave more than we take.  In this case, it is certainly a good thing we collected some of each as they are now gone!

Some of our readers may be able to classify these irises from the pictures but it is beyond my ability.  I know that these pictures prove that Louisiana irises are pretty hardy and will grow in undergrowth, bushes and without full sunlight.

This was an exceptionally beautiful specimen with a great color.

The above picture shows an area in which the irises were growing well although they were quite removed from the lake edge.  These were receiving more sunlight than most we found.

This is another area that was at least 50 feet from the lake edge and thick with weeds and grass.

These irises were growing in the water at the lake's edge.  (Lin's dog, part Labrador, really enjoyed the "field trip".)  

More irises growing in the lake's edge in an area that is very swampy and a perfect place for snake watching.

This was found very close nearby so it appears the area once had a home.  There were many people growing Louisiana irises in their gardens in the Shreveport area in the 40's and 50's, so I believe these irises were either planted in the area or escaped from other gardens around Cross Lake.  They may even be from seeds from irises grown in gardens around the lake.  We used to cut off all the seed pods from our thousands of Louisiana irises and throw them into Caddo Lake hoping they would take root on the side of the lake.

Do you know of a spot where irises grow wild?  Perhaps a nearby cemetery, or an old abandoned farmstead?  

If you would like to learn more about Louisiana irises you can visit the Society for Louisiana Irises, and more about all species of irises is available at the website of  The American Iris Society.