The American Iris Society Announces the 2024 Caparne-Welch Medal Winner

 'WEE DRAGONS'

The Caparne-Welch Medal is restricted to miniature dwarf bearded (MDB) irises. It is named in honor of William John Caparne (1855-1940) and Walter Welch (1887-1980). Caparne worked extensively breeding various dwarf iris species and was the first iris hybridizer to concentrate on smaller irises. Most of the dwarf iris cultivars grown in gardens in the first quarter of the 20th century were products of Caparne's hybridizing efforts. Walter Welch was the founder of the Dwarf Iris Society. After moving to Middlebury, Indiana, he met Paul Cook and began hybridizing irises. He shared Cook's enthusiasm for dwarf irises and set out to develop new forms for the garden.

Previous awards winners can be found at https://wiki.irises.org/Main/InfoAwards.

Miniature Dwarf Bearded Iris 'Wee Dragons'
photo by Jeanette Graham

'Wee Dragons' (Lynda Miller, R. 2016). Seedling# 6311A. MDB, 4.5"-5" (11-13 cm). Early midseason bloom. Standards deep red-purple; style arms butter yellow, rib red-violet; falls velvety dark burgundy; beards yellow-orange in throat, light blue middle and end. 'Mosaic' X 'Snips'. Mid-America 2017.

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 Bulletin, IRISES.

The American Iris Society Announces the 2024 Cook-Douglas Medal Winner

 'CHEERFUL CHIPMUNK'

 The Cook-Douglas Medal is restricted to standard dwarf bearded (SDB) irises. It is named in honor of Paul Cook (1891-1963) and Geddes Douglas (1902-1993). Paul Cook's work with dwarf irises was truly pioneering. His early breeding of dwarf irises led to a series of I. arenaria hybrids, the most notable being 'Keepsake,' 'Tampa,' and 'Promise.' He was the first to use the true I. pumila in his breeding programs, and this resulted in the introduction of the first of the great stud irises in the standard dwarf class: 'Baria,' 'Fairy Flax,' and 'Green Spot.'

Geddes Douglas was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1902. Douglas was a chemist and businessman. In the early 1950s, he founded the Geddes Douglas Garden Center in Nashville. He became a leader in the Tennessee Nurserymen's Association, and served a term as president of the Southern Nursery Association.

Previous awards winners can be found at: https://wiki.irises.org/Main/InfoAwards.

Standard dwarf bearded iris 'CHEERFUL CHIPMUNK'
Photo by Jeanette Graham

'Cheerful Chipmunk' (Michael Sutton, R. 2016) Seedling AZ-595-A. SDB, 10" (25 cm), Early to midseason bloom. Standards pale butter yellow; style arms cream; Falls pale yellow, chartreuse thumbprint with beech brown veining; beard hairs based white, tips yellow; slight spicy fragrance. 'Reddy Freddie' X 'Puddy Tat'. Introduced by Sutton's Iris Gardens in 2017.

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 Bulletin, IRISES.

The American Iris Society Announces the 2024 Williamson-White Medal Winner

  'CANDY BASKET'

The Williamson-White Medal is restricted to miniature tall bearded (MTB) irises. It is named in honor of E. B. Williamson (1877-1933), his daughter Mary Williamson (1909-1987) and Alice White (1886-1969). Although others had introduced irises that fit into the miniature tall bearded iris class before Williamson, he and his daughter were the first to breed them as cultivars in a distinctive class of irises. They were apparently byproducts of breeding for tall bearded irises. In the early 1950s, Alice White of Hemet, California began a crusade to gain recognition for the assets of these wonderful smaller irises. She organized table iris robins and wrote many articles for the AIS Bulletin and gardening magazines promoting their virtues.

Previous awards winners can be found at https://wiki.irises.org/Main/InfoAwards.

Miniature tall bearded iris 'CANDY BASKET'
photo by Jeanette Graham

'Candy Basket' (Chad Harris, R. 2015) Seedling 08MTB1. MTB, 22" (56 cm), Very early bloom. Standards warm caramel (RHS 166B), slight violet cast; style arms honey mustard-tan (163C); falls off white ground heavily veined black cherry-red (187A), faint golden rim; beards bright lemon-yellow (13A); slight spicy fragrance. 'Redrock Princess' X . 'Butterscotch Wine'. Pleasant 2016.. Introduced by Mount Pleasant Iris Farm 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 Bulletin, IRISES.

 

The American Iris Society Announces the 2024 Knowlton Medal

 'SICILIAN ORANGE'

The Knowlton Medal is restricted to border bearded (BB) irises. It is named in honor of Harold W. Knowlton (1888-1968) of Auburndale, Massachusetts, a tireless promoter of the border bearded class of irises. Bennett Jones wrote in The World of Irises: "Harold Knowlton was among the first to make deliberate selections of smaller plants. Two of his 1950 introductions, ‘Pearl Cup’ ... and ‘Cricket’... display the desirable features we still seek in modern border irises." Previous awards winners can be found at https://wiki.irises.org/Main/InfoAwards.

Border bearded iris 'Sicilian Orange'
photo by Christine Cosi

'Sicilian Orange' (Michael Sutton, R. 2016). Seedling# Z-2010-A. BB, 26" (66 cm). Midseason to late bloom. Standards yellow-orange, flushed peach-pink at midribs; style arms yellow-orange; F. ruby red, veined yellow-orange, ¼˝ yellow-orange edge; beards bright orange; ruffled; slight musky fragrance. 'Bottle Rocket' X 'Fruit Stripe'. Introduced by Sutton's 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 Bulletin, IRISES.