‘BLONDIE'S BLUSH’ (Sutton, 2013) Always a standout here! Pale cream, standards strongly flushed salmon
with orange-buff edges; ruffled white falls have narrow orange-buff edging
blending to salmon; bright orange beards! Beautifully ruffled, tatting on petal
edges and very fragrant.
‘BREEZIN’ (Schreiners, 2018) Snowy white standards; bright burgundy red
falls have clean white edging; orange beards. I particularly enjoy the way the individual flowers are perched on the
branches in less than level positioning. It gives personality and movement that I find an exceptional trait in
the garden!
‘CANEEL SUNSET’ (Kent Pfeiffer, 2020) I always brag on this deep, intense
orange flower with incredible substance. There is non other like it. It is not gigantic and there is pink flushing
around the tangerine-orange beards with heavy ruffling and delightful spicy
fragrance. The plants are tough as nails – which is a requirement is you are
born in the Midwest! My pet.
‘DESCHUTES’ (Schreiners, 2018) A shade of blue that you will find only in
children of the Schreiner blues! Wide, crisp flowers with heavy substance on
strong stalks. The falls are a bit
darker than the standards and the blue-white beards are dusted yellow. It's
mother is “Dodger Blue” and has gifted this iris with magnificent foliage!
‘FLIRTATIOUS GAL’ (Nicodemus, 2016)
A fabulous perennial with very strong stalks displaying the flowers to
perfection! Golden peach standards with lighter styles arms and crests. The falls are white, edged in peach with
deeper golden peach on shoulders; beards are blended in all three colors.
Indestructible plants and a very long season of bloom.
‘FRUIT SLICES’ (Lynda Miller, 2019)
The standards are a soft orange-apricot blend with wine tinting on midribs;
apricot-orange style arms have watermelon midribs. The falls are toasted watermelon, softly
washed orchid with bright tangerine beards. This pretty lady flaunts what would
seem to be pastel loveliness.... but when the sun shines through it! Yum!
‘GILDED GIRL’ (Nancy Price, 2014)
has large flowers on very, very strong plants. The stalks are strong and are loaded with buds. White standards have golden wire rims; golden
yellow styles arms. Falls are white with
golden yellow overlay; deep yellow beards. Large, wide, very ruffled flowers are admired across the garden
revealing hints of green and biscuit
tan. Indestructible plants!
‘HUGS AND KISSES’ (Paul Black, 2016) A
cream-white flower. The standards have a peach base and the style arms peach. Warm white falls have peach on the hafts and matching veining beside
orange beards. Under 36” here and does not have huge flowers, but it is a color
blend like no other!
‘I'M SMITTEN’ (Barry Blyth, 2018) Creamy pink standards are flushed orchid
through the midribs; paler soft creamy pink falls have rose wash at hafts
extending beside white beards that are brushed tangerine in throat. Pastel
loveliness that is very difficult to describe, clearly flashing its very wide
form gifted from her mother 'Magical'.
‘INSANIAC’ (Tom Johnson, 2012) White
falls have very narrow golden halos; white style arms. White falls have red-violet lines radiating
out to wide rimmed yellow-white borders; bright tangerine beards. Do not be
fooled! This lovely lady is as full of
mischief as she can be!
‘IRISH BLIZZARD’ (Barbara Nicodemus, 2018)
Pure, snowy white! Perfectly formed flowers are held on upright stalks with
not-so-wide branching … and the stalks do not get tangled in a clump like so
many modern hybrids! The crisp white
falls have pale green veining. It opens only one flower at a time and the
effect is one of dancing ladies on a music box.
Semi-flaring, lightly-laced flowers have some green veining. Plants that hustle ..but they are not
invasive. This pure white screams across the garden in strong contrast to all
the colors around her!
‘JUST BEFORE SUNRISE’ (Barbara Nicodemus, 2017) Dark, mysterious, bold and
fascinating! Very rounded flowers have smoky lavender standards flushed golden
tan with purple veining; style arms are smoky lavender with yellow-tan crests.
Falls are velvety royal purple, edged lighter, with yellow/sienna beards and
stately ruffles. Very intense, dark, and stands out from across the
garden. Tough plants with clean, wide
foliage and strong growth habits.
‘LASH OUT’ (Paul Black, 2019) Difficult
to describe, all petals are a blend of gold, amber, lilac, amber-red, lavender and orange. Not fairly tested here yet but I am hoping next year it performs
like it did in Oregon this spring!
‘MAGICAL’ (Joe Ghio, 2008) This has been around for a long time. It
grows a bit slower than many modern varieties but it can remain undisturbed in
a clump for an extended time. The
foliage is not as wide and upright as I would prefer, but the wide, elegant,
form is being passed on to its children with some very exciting new varieties
from Mike Sutton. When our familiar soggy bloom season turns sunny and warm,
she is a star performer!
‘MORE THAN RUFFLES’ (Paul Black, 2020)
Standards are slate-mauve; style arms are light tan-peach. Falls are mid-violet
with texture veins, soft khaki hafts and narrow lighter fall bands; dark orange
beards. So very colorful!
‘MYSTIC ART’ (Tom Johnson, 2019) Full,
smooth, medium pink standards; falls are rose to lavender-pink with softer pink
edges. Beards are purple shading to mauve and orange at tips. (This combination of colors gets my attention
and I keep hoping to see an equally perfect flower some day with deep,
purple-mauve falls displaying a fiery orange beard!) I am happy to be growing
this fine iris variety in my garden!
‘NEW IMAGE’ (Barbara Nicodemus, 2018) Crisp, upright, deep peach standards
have orange highlights; styles are deeper peach with frilled orange
crests. Candlelight falls have soft
mint-yellow veining that deepen toward the wide, peach fall rims; midribs and
back of falls are green. Very ruffled,
well branched, tall, strong and indestructible.
‘PAINTED LOVE’ (Tom Johnson, 2016)
Mid-gold standards are blushed red-violet; styles are buff tan. Wide falls are blue-violet with yellow-orange
beards! Another clean, smooth, well
formed and striking bi-color from Thomas that makes me smile!
‘QUE SERA SERA’ (Tom Johnson, 2020)
Lovely, soft yellow flowers are infused pink; light lemon style arms. Lavender and rose blended falls have deeper
texture veins and a ruffled and laced band of yellow; orange beards. A gorgeous
pastel!
‘SENOR JINX’ (Schreiners, 2018)
Looking for the darkest, smoothest, nearly black iris yet? Oh my word! It is very dark. It has yellow beards. The petals are wide and it
is a giant step forward in “black” irises! The stalks are strong and well branched. The foliage is tinted blue with
clean foliage. The photo in the Schreiner catalog is EXACTLY what the flower
looks like. In the garden the effect is truly BLACK with very good form! It is
a treasure!
‘SMOKY DUSK’ (Kieth Keppel, 2017) Standards and style arms are described as nightshade;
the falls are grape with a small circle of white around dark lime-yellow
beards. The name is an apt description. Very rounded form. Great garden
color! I am hoping the falls recurved
here this year because of my cultural imperfections!
‘SULTRY ATTIRE’ (Barbara Nicodemus, 2016) Deep rose-orchid flowers are heavily
infused violet, edged and feathered in tan-cinnamon. Matching style arms have
copper crests. Falls are deep burgundy-brown with tiny veining around bold burnt
sienna-brass beards. Fabulous plants, excellent stalks and good bud count.
‘SUNNY GLITTER’ (Schreiner, 2019) Standards are pale chartreuse
yellow. Falls are slightly darker and
surrounded by wisteria purple wash; yellow beards and fragrance aplenty. The
colors are not bold, but from a distance the yellow shines through and it is a
color I cannot recall seeing in the iris garden before. Good growth habits and
a heavy bloomer with good bud count.
‘SUNNY SEAS’ (Lynda Miller, 2019)
Bright yellow standards and style arms. Lavender falls are edged and washed
buff; yellow hafts. The beards are
orange in the throat and midsection and end in small, lavender “hooks” instead
of elongated horns! So happy that Lynda is working with the horned, spooned
and flounced varieties; she is doing a great job. Her new creations have quality flower form
and plants that grow well.
‘SWIVEL HIPS’ (Tom Johnson, 2016) Smoky
pink standards are heavily infused royal purple. Very wide, ruffled, velvety royal purple
falls are ruffled with lighter banding and smoky pink beards. Good plant
habits.
‘TEN CARAT DIAMOND’ (Gary Slagle, 2013) A magnificent creation! Creamy white standards are soft yellow at
midrib; falls are creamy white with soft yellow fall reverse; white beards are
tipped yellow. This is not just another
white iris. This is a magnificent
creation! Very wide, crisp, clean with tough and durable flowers. The plant
increase is just right—you can leave it in a clump for 4 years without any
decrease in quality. The foliage is
crisp, wide and erect. The stalks are ramrod thick, perfectly branched and the
flowers have amazing substance. The flowers remain open a full three days--many
times for four days if there is no pounding rainfall. It has been a star here
for three straight years! Keep your eyes open for new seedlings from Gary. (His Facebook nickname is “Fanatic”!)
‘VANITY GIRL’ (Tom Johnson, 2016)
Standards are a lovely, smooth medium pink; the falls are white with matching
pink hafts, brushed paler pink at edges.
Beards are white, brushed coral, and pale lavender at tips. (It's Mom is ‘VENITA FAYE’, that outstanding soft pink from Keith Keppel in 2008.)
Venita should be very proud of this tough garden iris that never disappoints!
‘WINTER HAVEN’ (Anton Mego, 2020) Mike
Sutton is rendering iris growers a great service in many ways … in this
scenario, we would never see Anton's fabulous creations were it not for all the
work and effort Mike puts into getting his creations grown, selected and
introduced to the gardening public. This flower has white standards with green
veining and midribs; the style arms are white.
The ice white falls have violet-blue haft marks around the orange beards
with red-violet haft markings in the throat. It grows like a champ, the flowers
are wide and with outstanding substance; the stalks are strong and robust. So unique and very, very close to
perfect.
There you have it …. a very
fine iris season in 2021. Very fine,
indeed!
