The American Iris Society Announces the 2023 Founders of Signa Medal Winner

'MORE RASPBERRIES PLEASE'

The Founders of SIGNA Medal is restricted to species irises (SPEC) and is named to honor the founding members of the Species Iris Group of North America (SIGNA). Previous awards winners can be found at https://wiki.irises.org/Main/InfoAwards.

Species iris 'More Raspberries Please'

photo by Jeanette Graham

'More Raspberries Please' (Rita Butler 2015). Seedling# VRS08. SPEC, 18-36" (46-91 cm), Midseason bloom. Standards medium raspberry-pink; style arms white, pink flush in center and edges; falls darker raspberry, white signal about ½ way down petal, dark veins blending to soft butter yellow into throat. 'Raspberry Slurp' X self. Introduced by Cascadia Iris Gardens in 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 

Iris tenax - A wild population in Thurston County, WA

by Mike Unser

While exploring trails and State wildlife preserves in my local area several years ago, I found a wild population of Iris tenax, our local species in the Pacific Coast Iris family. I'd seen this species in the area before, but it was always in open grasslands and prairie preserves. Clumps of irises were growing along a shaded maintenance road and in open spaces with higher moisture content than open prairie lands provide.

Beside the road I. tenax seemed to be happily growing with little direct sunlight and competing with woodland. The clumps were open and not as dense as those found in full sun. Stalks tended to be more vertical and less arching.

The foliage was narrow and grass-like.

The blooms ranged in shade from lighter to darker in tones of orchid pink thru lavender, often with yellow signal markings and lighter fall lines. I caught a white clump blooming once but have not seen it since.

The flowers had flaring petals and enough waving on the falls to make the tips appear pointed. Quite a charming wildflower.

Further down the road the area opens out a bit and the woods recede to the edges of the clearing where  homes once stood. I am guessing they housed people working at the munitions factories in the area during the great wars of the early 20th century. Both homes and factories are long gone, but remnants of them can be found if you keep a sharp eye out.

The open areas are mowed every few years to keep the invasive Scotch broom down. This doesn't seem to harm the irises.

Some have deeper more intense colors to catch the eye.

There were even some very short ones blooming in the middle of the road.

This last one is my favorite. It was a very silvery-toned lilac. Quite unique in the population. I marked it and later scavenged a few seeds from which I have managed to get a single plant growing in the garden. Hoping it retains that unique color. We'll find out next spring. Now if that white one would just turn up again. Would love to get seed from it as well.

  

2019 Founders of SIGNA Medal

The American Iris Society

Announces

The Founders of SIGNA Medal

'Lakeside Ghost'

This medal is restricted to species irises (SPEC) and is named to honor the founding members of the Species Iris Group of North American (SIGNA).

'Lakeside Ghost'--image by Chad Harris

'Lakeside Ghost' ( Chad Harris, R. 2011) Seedling #07LAK3. SPEC (I. laevigata), 37 (94 cm). Midseason bloom. Style arms smoky red-violet (RHS 83C), crests pale blue-violet (92C); falls (6) pale blue-violet randomly speckled dark blue-violet (93B) giving smoky blue-violet effect. Parentage unknown, seed from SIGNA 04 Shimizu. Aitken's Salmon Creek 2012. Honorable Mention 2015, Award of Merit 2017.

The World of Irises blog will be posting once a day all of the medal winners. The entire list of winners can be found at the AIS website, the AIS Encyclopedia and later in the AIS Bulletin, IRISES.

THE FOUNDERS OF SIGNA MEDAL "RUTH WILDER" Species irises

By Susanne Holland Spicker

It is with pleasure that we congratulate Walter Hoover by Randall Bowen, for the Species iris 'RUTH WILDER" as the winner of the Founders Of Signa Medal, 2017

'RUTH WILDER' (Walter Hoover by Randall Bowen 2004) Photo by Eleanor Hutchison

This striking Species iris, introduced by Randall Bowen for Walter Hoover, is described in the AIS WIKI as follows:

'RUTH WILDER' (Walter Hoover by Randall Bowen) SPEC 28-30" Late bloom. Standards light red-violet; style arms near white tipped light red-violet; falls red-violet, bright golden signal. Iris By The Creek 2004. HM 2009, AM 2013, The Founders Of Signa Medal 2017.

A special thanks to Randall Bowen for introducing this beautiful Species iris for Walter Hoover.

For a complete list of the 2017 AIS Awards, please 

visit http://wiki.irises.org/.

Interest in iris species? Please visit the Species Iris Group of North America website.

The Louisiana Iris Species Preservation Project

By Patrick O'Connor

In 2015, the Society for Louisiana Irises adopted a proposal by Charles Perilloux of Baton Rouge to create a “Louisiana Iris Species Preservation Project.”  At the 2016 SLI convention, procedures and plans for the project were approved, and work has begun.

The problem that has precipitated the need for the project is the disappearance from the wild of many of the forms of the five generally recognized Louisiana iris species which comprise the Series Hexagonae:  I. hexagona, I. brevicaulis, I. fulva, I. giganticaerulea, and I. nelsonii.  When the modern “discovery” and introduction to these plants to horticulture occurred in the 1920s and 1930s, they were already recognized as endangered.  Dr. John K. Small first encountered these irises in Louisiana in 1925, and his subsequent publications in the Addisonia: Journal of the New York Botanical Garden were entitled “Vanishing Iris” and “Salvaging the Native American Irises” (both 1931).

I. fulva 'Ouachita Half Moon' (Thomas Barham)

I. fulva 'Shangri-la Pass" (Benny Trahan)

I. fulva dwarf from Illinois

In Louisiana the irises are not currently threatened everywhere.  One can still see large stands of native irises in freshwater swamps and low wild areas.  But the extent of these natural spaces has diminished markedly over the years.  The current city limits of New Orleans, for example, once contained massive fields of irises, but development has destroyed them all.  Louisianas are often seen in roadside ditches, but one pass of a road grader or a crew spraying herbicide wipes them out.  I. hexagona, the first to be given species designation based on specimens from South Carolina, apparently is entirely gone from its state of origin.

I.. brevicaulis from Gary Babin in Baton Rouge

I. brevicaulis from Point Coupee Parish, LA

It is not just numbers of plants that are threatened.  When a population is destroyed, any unique forms that may have developed in the area are also eliminated.  The Louisiana Iris Species Preservation Project is focused precisely on the need to preserve the range of colors and forms found among the native Louisiana irises. 

And the variety is remarkable.  The species fulva and brevicaulis probably are more varied than the others, no doubt due to a much wider geographic range.  Both extend well into the North, whereas hexagona and giganticaerulea are limited to the Southeast and Gulf Coast states.  I. nelsonii is restricted to a few square miles in South Louisiana near the town of Abbeville.

I. nelsonii 'Bronco Road' (Benny Trahan)

I. nelsonii 'Young's Coulee (Benny Trahan)

It is instructive to see the ranges of these irises displayed on county level maps.  The website of the Biota of North America Program presents beautiful distribution maps of all the irises species native to North America.  Take a look at:  http://bonap.net/NAPA/TaxonMaps/Genus/County/Iris 

I. hexagona from South Carolina

I. hexagona from Florida (Benny Trahan)

Interestingly, the BONAP site recognizes a sixth Louisiana iris species:  I. savannarum.  Savannarum was one of the species names applied by Dr. Small, but most authorities have abandoned it, lumping these irises, found mainly in Florida, with I. hexagona.  BONAP, by contrast, shows hexagona as having a more restricted range from North Florida and up the coast to South Carolina.  I. savannarum, following Small, is an iris that extends from North Florida down to nearly the Everglades.

Saving the variety of species forms for posterity requires a long term and systematic effort.  It will have to be implemented in phases and will take several years to achieve the full scope envisioned.  In years past, many specimens have been “rescued” by those attracted to their unique beauty, but “saved” plants sometimes are forgotten and effectively lost as people pass from the scene or interests change.   Without intervention, much of the genetic diversity of Louisiana irises will be lost to future generations.

I. giganticaerulea 'Barbara Elaine Taylor' (James Taylor)

I. giganticaerulea from LaPlace, LA

The approach of the Louisiana Iris Species Preservation Project is to create permanent collections of representative examples of the colors and forms of each species from throughout its geographic range.  Once established and thriving in the collections, plants would be made available to individuals and organizations consistent with guidelines adopted for the project.

A beginning has been made.  Charles Perilloux chairs the SLI committee overseeing the project.  A list of over 50 specimens, often named irises, has been compiled, and many have been assembled in a planting in New Orleans.  The Greater New Orleans Iris Society is taking a lead role in maintaining an initial core collection using space made available by City Park in New Orleans. “Stewards” have been identified who eventually will maintain duplicate plantings of some or all the irises on the Preservation List. 

The Project is in need of Stewards outside Louisiana.  It is important to identify and maintain forms from the full range of the Series Hexagonae.  At present, some species forms from around the country have been obtained, but all the Stewards reside in Louisiana.  Some of the species, such as some hexagonas (or savannarums) do not thrive in Louisiana growing conditions, and a special effort is needed to create plantings in other states and regions.

The Greater New Orleans Iris Society website has a page on the Species Preservation Project that outlines the organization and procedures of the effort.  http://www.louisianairisgnois.com/SpeciesPreservation/  An upcoming article in the SLI publication Fleur de Lis addresses this also.

The GNOIS website also displays in one place pictures of many of the irises currently included on the Project’s Preservation List.  One often hears about the progress made over the years in hybridizing Louisiana irises and about the color breaks that have been achieved.  A glance at the assembled pictures of the many species forms is an eye opener.  Many of the color breaks we have welcomed were initially supplied by Mother Nature.  As wildflowers, the Louisiana irises were already a remarkably varied group of plants, and the native forms need to be preserved.

The Korean Iris by Jim Murrain

    Of course it's not the only Iris species native to the Korean peninsula but it is the only Iris named for Korea. Iris koreana is a bright little thing. If you are looking for a small Iris that is not too small, and not too large, Iris koreana is just right. The leaves are wide enough that it won't be mistaken for grass but narrow enough to be in perfect proportion to the stalk and flowers. It also remains semi-evergreen so you needn't fret about finding it come spring.

    A clean bright yellow with no brassy tones it shines in the garden. In a lightly shaded bed or maybe morning sun and afternoon shade it will reliably perform its dance. At about seven inches in flower it remains dainty but the strong color of the flowers make sure you will notice it when in bloom. In Kansas City it flowers with the MDBs, Miniature Dwarf Bearded irises.

    Iris koreana is a recent introduction to North America. Darrell Probst first collected it in 1997 on the South Korean shore of the East China Sea. It is related to the tiny Iris minutoaurea which flowers at only three inches but shares its big sisters bright color. Although equally easy to grow it is also easy to lose in the garden because it is so tiny.

    Joe Pye Weed's Garden has introduced a vigorous and free flowering form of Iris koreana named 'Firefly Shuffle'. With heavy bloom and consistent increase you will soon be able to share this "just right" iris with your friends. 

A Brief Guide to the Genus Neomarica

By Andi Rivarola

I had one more desire fulfilled this summer once I opened the SIGNA Newsletter. As with many plant species that have traveled far from their original environment, some gardeners believe that identifying iris neomarica is one difficult task. With approximately twenty different species within the neomarica range, one could easily give up, but after reading the article on SIGNA's Newsletter, I feel encouraged and more ready to face the task.

N. guttata

In this wonderful article, the author writes about the confusion that most of us face when trying to identify this genus originally from the rain forests of Brazil. Mr. Lindolpho Capellari Junior, in Brazil, provided a lot of the original work.

N. northiana

Scott Douglas, the author of the SIGNA article, gives a quick summary of how to identify them.   He states that "the most commonly seen species as houseplants in temperate regions or as garden plants in warmer areas are: N. northiana, N. candida, N. gracilis, and N. caerulea. The first three cause perhaps the most confusion. The only real way to positively identify specimens is, unfortunately, to dissect them in a laboratory."


The article goes on to give a few tips on how to identify them in the garden, and additionally, it discusses the yellow, blue and white blooming neomarica irises.  If you are interested in this topic, I encourage you to join SIGNA and get access to all of the wonderful articles they publish in their newsletter. 

Typical Habitat of Neomarica

Note: SIGNA (The Species Iris Group of North America, a Section of The American Iris Society) now offers a new green electronic-only membership. Instead of receiving printed publications via U.S. Mail, members will receive them by email in PDF format. Details are on their Membership page. The SIGNA Bulletin is published twice a year and is shared with all its members. It contains color photos, and fifteen to twenty articles on iris species, hybridizers, researchers and explorers. 

Girls Who Wear Glasses

By Jim Murrain

Iris speculatrix has an amusing name. The Latin translation is female spy or watcher. I like to get more literal and think of this as the pretty little Iris that wears glasses.

She was first seen in Hong Kong but is now known to inhabit wider more temperate areas of China and Taiwan. The Hong Kong plants proved to be delicate to grow and tender, but it is now known that this is probably the southern-most end of its distribution. Plants from more northern areas are much more tolerant to cultivation and hardier, too

This is an evergreen Iris hardy in USDA Zone 6 but happier in zones 7 to 9 and maybe even warmer. In my Kansas City garden I must mulch it with shredded leaves every fall as a cold winter wind can dry the leaves. This sports the most beautiful glossy green foliage of any Iris I have grown. 

Of course we all grow iris for the flowers and I. speculatrix does extremely well at that. It has delicate looking blooms the size of I. cristata but held well above the leaves at 10 to 12 inches high. This is the tallest of any iris in the Chinenses Series. The color ranges from palest violet to royal purple. But it is the signal area that really stands out. It has well defined twin spots on the falls, or as I see it, she wears glasses. This blossoms in mid to late spring with two buds per stem. This iris has an unusual habit when it goes to seed. The seed pods have an acute point and bend at a 90 degree angle from the stem.

This has proven to be a very easy iris to grow in light to moderate shade and quite drought tolerant. I have not tried it in a damp area as those don't exist in my garden. Although grown sporadically for decades, it seems never to have been propagated and available from commercial Iris nurseries. I don't know anyone selling these irises.

Darrell Probst found an Iris in China that looks to be a cousin to I. speculatrix. It has not been described or named yet. It is quite a bit smaller and flowers in early spring. It also has evergreen foliage and intriguing blue flowers.

So here's two more Chinese Iris species that deserve to be in the gardens of adventurous gardeners. Obviously we need more nurseries that specialize in these smaller species.

Siberian, Species and Japanese Irises

I was so disappointed to hear about the cancellation of the Siberian and Species Convention, but then the Ensata Gardens Catalog arrived and on the cover the glorious Japanese iris called 'Alexisaurus,' which seems to indicate an enormous bloom; and that act of viewing this iris and the catalog, these mere mortal and ordinary activities, just took my breath away and once again had an out of body experience. (Wait a minute, I meant to keep that to myself.) In any case, my disappointment somehow disappeared, and an air of calm overcame me.

Ensata says that 'Alexisaurus' is a pure white tetraploid Jill Copeland 2012 introduction of flairing form, with 6-inch blooms. Here it is, you be the judge. Would this take your breath away?

Then, after viewing the entire collection of irises carried by Ensata, the catalog concludes with another amazing looking Siberian iris, by hibridizer and fellow blog contributor, Bob Hollingsworth. It's his 2012 introduction 'Lemmon Mousse.' Bob says that,"a clump makes a sweet dessert of yellow and white confection. Lemon yellow buds open to yellow blooms that change to near white with yellow signals by mid day." Man, am I taking this experience too seriously or are these beautiful irises inspiring you too?

I could not keep this information to myself, so here it is.

The information about the Siberian and Species Iris Convention postponement is here, and for information about a future Convention date, please check the Siberian Iris Society's website.

A Capital Idea

This has been an enjoyably mild winter for the northern tier of states so far, but, as winter oh so slowly releases its grip, the days are still short, and here in Michigan there is still plenty of time for snow, ice and freezing weather with only basketball and plant catalogs to keep us sane. So let’s close our eyes and imagine the scene four months from now. The days of June 7-9^th, we know will be warm, sunny ones, and of course the irises will be in boisterous bloom. As many of you may know, those are the dates of the Siberian and Species Convention – arriving on schedule every third year. This year it returns to southern Michigan, the location of the first of these events in 1993. Since the Convention is being hosted in Lansing, the capital city of Michigan, we have called it A Capital Idea.  The greater Lansing area is the home to the state government, a couple of very modern (and thankfully, quite busy) General Motors plants, and Michigan State University. None of these are on our tour.

What will be on tour are four gardens (five if you count our own two locations separately). Two are in the Lansing area and two are near Kalamazoo, about 90 minutes away. In Lansing you will visit our garden(s) (Bob and Judy Hollingworth) – we have the guests in one place and seedlings and Siberian display beds in another nearby - and John and Jean Kaufmanns’ garden. The Kaufmanns are fairly new to the national iris scene but it is not beginner’s luck that they have grown the guests better than any other place I can remember. John is by profession an agronomist and herbicide specialist and he took growing the iris guests as a challenge to his professional abilities.  He also has been running trials of newer herbicides with the intention of finding ones that are safe to use on irises. This work was funded by the AIS Foundation and John will be giving a tour of the plots and reviewing the results as part of the tour. 

The two gardens near Kalamazoo are probably familiar to many readers, particularly from past Japanese iris conventions. Bob Bauer and John Coble at Ensata Gardens indeed need no introduction. Lots of iris interest there of course, and a large Victorian house that they have restored to museum quality standards. Jim and Jill Copeland with hybridizing projects in Species, Siberians and Japanese are the final hosts. For many people, the excellent gardens aside, the lasting memory of a visit here is Jim’s Famous Fish Fry. This is Jim’s excuse to indulge his first passion, fishing, and once again you can be sure he will have caught his limit of walleye and we shall all benefit at lunch.

So much for the stages for this performance, but who will be the stars? That’s not so easy to say. We have well over 150 different guests – mostly Siberians but also some interesting species crosses – laevigatas, and x typhifolia,  pseudacorus, versicolor and virginica crosses. Here are a few photos to tempt you to come, but they aren’t meant to predict the front runners. More to come in the next blog. On view, there are many newer colors, forms and patterns from virtually all the US hybridizers and a scattering from overseas, as well as advances in more traditional form and colors.

So, here’s a formal invitation to join us for the weekend. To find a registration form you can go to the website of the Society for Siberian Irises, or look inside the coming Spring issue of The Siberian Iris, or contact Deb Diget, the convention registrar.

We hope you will indeed think this would be a capital idea.

Irises at Aitken's: Part Four - Misc. Species

Aitken's Salmon Creek Garden grows a large variety of species irises. here are a few that were blooming last spring during my visit. First up is I. lactea, a lovely little species native to the Asian steppes across to Korea. I had never seen this species before and found it really charming, with a profusion of light lavender-blue flowers featuring narrow spidery petals and tall feathery standards.


I. tectorum is a species native to China and is one of the few species closely related to bearded irises. It has even been successfully crossed with them. It is a low growing species with a rhizome very like bearded irises, however its petals are adorned with a filamented crest where a beard would be. It has a very open habit giving the flowers more of a flat appearance. Terry and Barbara grow both the blue and the white varieties of this charming iris.




Last I have an example of a siberian iris to show you, not a wild species variety tho -this one is a modern hybrid and is really different. 'White Amber' (Schafer/Sacks 2001) is a large colorful flower showing a major advance in the range that this family has acquired thru the efforts of breeders over the past 30 years. They are really creating a revolution in siberian irises equivalent to what bearded irises went thru when the explosion of tetraploids first came on the scene in the late 1920's.


Unfortunately it was a bit early for the siberians and this was the only one blooming, but that is just an excuse to return again later in the season to admire a new crop of flowers in full bloom.

Tomorrow we'll conclude with a peek into the future - seedlings growing at Aitken's under trial for eventual introduction.