What Are They...Median Iris?

I am sitting here transfixed...by my window watching it rain--well actually pour down. This might not seem to be such an unusual thing, unless you know that we have had only .6 of an inch of rain since September 2010. Well, what am I doing sitting here…I’m going out to run in the rain! Will be back to work on this blog when it stops raining.

It is now 24 hours later and here I am; very happily back to my computer. My iris just got 1.44 inches of rain, all since I began working on this blog! Now I am watching out my window as a skinny red robin pecks at a peach that fell from my tree and a beautiful Baltimore oriole is eating off my hummingbird feeder and being buzzed by three hummers. I could be content to just watch it all, but I must begin this blog. It will be about my newest love in iris and I must tell you I am not an expert on them…the median iris. I planted my first medians four years ago, and I will tell you my progress at the end of this blog if you stick around to read it.  

Who's First In Line?

Median Iris –What are they? They are a group of bearded iris that are shorter than the tall bearded (TB) iris and taller than the miniature dwarf bearded (MDB). They bloom after the MDBs and mostly before the TB iris. They extend the iris bloom season with regal form, remarkable colors and patterns. Median iris are smaller and compact compared to the tall bearded iris. They make perfect plants for borders or in the front of your flower beds, and make ideal additions in rock gardens. Medians tolerate wide varieties of conditions being much more cold tolerant, withstanding strong winds, and strong rain downpours. When the Median Iris Society organized in 1948, five new classes of bearded irises (MDB, SDB, IB, MTB and BB) were added to the already popular TB iris class.

(click on images for a larger view)

The result of this effort was having four distinct bloom seasons starting with the miniature dwarf iris season, followed a little later by the standard dwarf iris season, and then later came the intermediate bearded iris season and finally the border (BB), miniature tall (MTB) and TB season.

Median iris come in four different classes.

1.   The crossing of I. pumila with the tall bearded (TB) iris resulted in what is known as the standard dwarf bearded iris (SDB) type. The SDBs are 8–15” in height with blooms that are 2-4” in width. The SDBs bloom after the miniature dwarf bearded iris and slightly into the intermediate iris bloom season. They have thick attractive mounds of sword-like green leaves that grow throughout most of the season. The SDBs have an enormous variety of colors and patterns and that combined with a great vigor and ease of growth make them a wonderful edition to all gardens.

2.   Then there are the crosses of SDBs with TBs (or TBs with species iris) that grow into the intermediate bearded iris (IB). The IBs are 16-27” tall with flowers that are 3½-5 wide. The IBs fit both in size and bloom time between the SDBs and the TBs. They are very hardy growers, dependable bloomers, disease resistant and can withstand high winds, sudden freezes, and other unexpected weather changes. They come in the full range of colors and combinations as the TBs.

3.   Next we have the miniature tall bearded (MTB) iris that are 16-25 inches in height with very slender dainty stalks and nicely branched stalks with flowers whose combined width and height is not more than 6” total. They started as diploid runts of iris that first appeared in TB gardens. Then hybridizers used I. aphylla's, a family of shorter tetraploid species bearded irises that increase branching and have smaller flowers than TB’s. They started by crossing I. aphylla with selected BB and short TB until they developed a tetraploid MTB that met the same requirements as the diploid MTB. The MTBs have a very pleasant fragrance that is essential in this lovely iris also aptly named the table iris. The flowers are less ruffled and more tailored than the TBs. The boom season is later the IBs and about the same as border bearded (BB) and TB. This class is ideal for floral arrangements. MTBs are the best branched of the medians, and fit nicely in the garden.

4.  The class of medians known as border bearded (BB) started as small versions of TB iris that did not overpower other plants in an ornamental bed, and did not blow over in high winds, and worked well in flower bed borders. Over the years since BB became a class, hybridizers have made great strides in the improving the vigor, consistency of height, flower proportion, colors and color patterns. Bloomstalks of BB should be 16" to 27.5", the width of the flowers should not exceed 5”, the height of the flower should not exceed 8.5"and they should bloom along with the tall beardeds. BB iris look like and bloom like the TB iris but their size are smaller and properly balanced for its smaller size with erect fans that do not obscure the blooms.

I am Debbie Strauss, a newbee in the median iris world. I am a member of The American Iris Society and just became the director in charge of the silent auction at the National Conventions. I am a Median Iris Society member and their new fundraising chair. I live in far West Texas in a desert-like environment. TB iris do wonderful here, especially if you stress them out before planting the new rhizomes (if you purchased them from anywhere except West Texas). Four years ago our local iris society hosted a fall regional convention for Texas; I was the iris auction chair. I wrote to every hybridizer I could and sent them a little money and asked for iris for our regional auction. I was not particular about what they sent and I received many many iris. Hmmm…lots of medians…their colors and patterns were too tempting, so I bid on and won many of them…I planted them and the first year they all did well and multiplied and at least half of them bloomed. Then the second year…I can’t even describe how delighted I was when the SDBs were lovely large clumps and bloomed beautifully. If you look at the photos below, you will see why my first plantings of median iris made me a big fan of the wonderful median iris classes.

The pictures below are from two year clumps! They are growing in my West Texas soil that is a very alkaline sandy mix. They are planted along side my hot driveway, with a large stinky hedge behind them. We get very little rain, only a few winter days below freezing, and rarely have below zero temperatures. We have wind with spring gusts from 30 – 60 mph nearly every day. To make it really bad; we had 68 days this summer of over 100-degrees and until last week only .6 inch of rain since last September. So for any iris to grow and prosper here…takes a miracle…well a very good hardy plant anyway. 

Even though the TB irises are the most popular iris among the AIS membership, I believe it might be because conventions and shows are scheduled around the bloom season of the TB iris. Perhaps like me, many people have not given the medians a chance. Even though only one border bearded iris, 'Brown Lasso' and one Intermediate Bearded iris, 'Starwoman,' have been awarded the AIS’s highest award, the Dykes Medal, I think those numbers will increase. Here are pictures of these two wonderful median Dykes winners.

Brown Lasso

I am predicting with all the stellar work of the median iris hybridizers median iris popularity will increase leaps and bounds in the near future. If you have not yet planted a median iris or two, take a leap of faith, look through the many colors, patterns, sizes, and bloom times and get started. Oh, by the way… I took "Best of Show" two years with a median iris! They thought they scheduled the show for TB bloom!

Iris Classics: 'Gerald Darby'

It is not often that you find an iris that can offer great garden interest thruout the growing season, but the classic species cross 'Gerald Darby' is one that really shines. This beautiful variety is a hybrid of I. versicolor and I. virginica, tho it is sometimes erroneously listed as one or the other of those species or even as the impossible cross of Siberian-Louisiana. Created by Gerald Darby, it was named and introduced after his passing in 1967 by Coe.


The show starts off with a bang in early spring when the fabulous foliage of this iris bursts forth heavily colored deep violet. The fans are very striking and the color rises quite high on them making it really stand out. In May the deep blackish bloom stalks emerge and rise to produce a profusion of small, flaring flowers in a lovely shade of medium blue-violet with bright yellow signals. The buds and blooms are profuse and a clump at its peak is like a cloud of butterflies.


This water loving iris can reach to six feet in ideal conditions, but rarely gets taller than three and a half feet for me, as our soil is very lean. It is happiest in moist soil but does just fine in regular garden conditions, where the rhizomes appreciate a good composty mulch. After the flowers finish, the foliage color fades to green in summers heat, while the seedpods swell and float like little green balloons over the gracefully arching fans. Most species crosses are sterile but 'Gerald Darby' usually produces abundant seed here, tho I have never tried to germinate them.


'Gerald Darby' is an iris that, thru the test of time, has really proven itself to be a fantastic addition to most any garden. It is terrifically hardy and can be successfully grown from Zones 4 to 9. A vigorous grower as well, it quickly makes a beautiful clump. You can purchase it from commercial growers who specialize in beardless irises and also those that offer pond plants. Try it, you'll like it.

You can see loads of fabulous photos and read more about this wonderful iris and the different ways to use it in the garden at Nancy J. Ondra's garden blog. You'll find additional photos and its official registration info at the AIS Iris Encyclopedia.

What is color?

Not long ago I read the article "In Quest of Pink," written by Steve Poole and published in IRISES, the Bulletin of the American Iris Society. It described in a comprehensive way the search for the very best pink irises. The piece brought up several questions like, "what is pink?" "How intense of a pink iris do I like? Do I really have a real pink iris? And, most importantly the following question: What is color?


While, researching for this post I came across an infinite number of websites dedicated to COLOR. Some were very scientific while others assumed a lighter, more fun approach to the subject. I will try to expose both.

'Coffee Trader' (Barry Blyth, R. 2004)

For example, the website Color Vision & Art explains that "we perceive color just as we perceive taste. When we eat, our taste buds sense four attributes: sweet, salty, sour and bitter. Similarly, when we look at a scene, our visual nerves register color in terms of the attributes of color: the amount of green-or-red; the amount of blue-or-yellow; and the brightness." (To see how colors are registered in terms of the attributes of color, go to the website and point at the painting by Renoir.)

Yet another website, DevX, calls it this way: "Color is the byproduct of the spectrum of light, as it is reflected or absorbed, as received by the human eye and processed by the human brain."

Being non-artistic and also color-challenged, my impressions of color have always been based in my association colors with everyday-life items. Green as in plants, brown like the earth, sky blue, yellow as the sun, orange as in the fruit, pink like baby stuff, black and white. Any deviation from these colors have always represented a challenge.

'Timescape' (Ben Hager, R. 1989)

A colleague of mine told me, "when deciding your garden color scheme, choose from a three-color palette. If you do that, you can't go wrong and you'll have a sure winning design" I said, "I can't do that, I like all colors."

And yet, another friend said to me, "my partner is crazy, he wants to make a white and green garden only -- no other colors." And, I totally agreed with the crazy part.


19th century physiologist Karl Ewald Konstantin Hering (August 5, 1834 – January 26, 1918) devised the first theory of color vision. Hering  believed that the visual system worked based on a system of color opponency. He said that there were six primary colors, coupled in three pairs: red–green, yellow–blue and white–black. So far so good, I can understand this and follow the meaning correctly.


So, beyond the scientific understanding of color, what makes us chose different colors for our garden? Is it understanding of color combinations? Is it the appreciation of how color affects our mood? Is it having or not having coffee in the morning?

Dykes Medal Winner 'Dauntless' (Clarence Phillips Connell, R. 1929) 

Border Bearded iris 'Ensign' (Eric Tankesley-Clarke, R. 1992)

I remember reading the first few descriptions of iris colors and how they were so tough for me to follow, and thinking, "what do they mean?" Here are a few examples:

"The standards are light purple paling to yellow tan rim and the falls are white ground, purple luminata wash. The beards are yellow with rust hair tips.

Standards lilac mauve; falls smooth coffee-rose, slightly lighter area at tangerine orange beard.

Standards rusty mahogany; style arms brass; falls bright violet, mahogany edges, brass shoulders; beards gold.

S. fluted golden yellow; F. deep orchid violet, sharp brown rim on edge; yellow orange beard at base, turning into fuzzy violet horn.

Standards white; falls chartreuse, radiating white ray pattern over 3/4 of petal; beards white, hairs faintly tipped tangerine; pronounced sweet fragrance."

Am I the only to be challenged by these descriptions? I don't have a tip for you on how to best read these, I am merely exposing my shortcoming. Over time though, I learned to read these descriptions S-L-O-W-L-Y, one word at the time - visualize that; then one full complete sentence, and visualize that; and then the entire paragraph. "Standards are...;" then, "Falls are...;" and, "Beards are..." OK, now I can visualize the entire flower. Do you have a tip for reading iris color descriptions and connecting to the visual image of it?

Spuria iris 'White Heron' (Milliken 1948)

In any case, I do love a variety of color in the garden, so while In the midst of color research, I found some fun tools. Did you know that there's such color names as: 

• Acapulco
• Magic Mint
• Blue Romance
• Everglade
• Powder Ash

And, these just in the green hue? These are many other colors waiting to be found In the website Name that Color. Chirag Mehta created a tool to show us how to locate color names such as the ones above. Hope you like playing with it as much as I did.

Iris Classics: 'Bayberry Candle'

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Caroline DeForest registered her creation 'Bayberry Candle' in 1966, and it was released to the public a few years later. It quickly started racking up well deserved awards at iris shows, receiving an Honorable Mention in 1970 and an Award of Merit in 1972. This variety has every good quality one could want in a tall bearded iris: vigorous growth habits, proven hardiness, disease resistant foliage, tall, strong stems, loads of buds and show bench quality blooms and branching. The flowers were a unique color tone for the day. From Fleur de Lis Gardens catalog for 1970:

A wonderful showy new iris in an entirely new color. Almost a brass green, it is a bicolor with rich Chartreuse Lime standards and really quite brilliant golden falls toned Olive green with the color intensified to deep olive around the bright golden beard. The whole flower has a brassy metallic like overtone that makes it really stand out. Flowers are large and have excellent form and ultra heavy substance. One of our favorites.

You might think such an odd color combination would be difficult to use in the garden, but not so. Once you see it combined with rich purples, rusts and reds you'll love the note it adds to the floral palette. Here it is planted with the deep red 'Spiked Punch', 'Black Castle', purple lupines, the rusty orange of 'Gingersnap', and in the back ground 'Siva Siva and 'Radiant Apogee'.


'Bayberry Candle' is as great today as it was when it was first introduced - if you enjoy irises with unique colors this one would be an excellent addition to your garden.

Back in the Garden

Days are getting shorter. I am very aware of daytime because it affects me in so many ways. Sun light has set the direction of my day since I was a kid. Bright opened eyes at sunrise. Feeling sleepy even at sunset. I've never been a night owl. So, when I have less and less time for the evening walk with the pooches I know summer is ending, which in itself is not bad.

Fall is the season I really enjoy. Most of all because it's the season I can start seeing irises come back to life, and can also spend more time outdoors. In the middle of summer, about a month a go or so, I started cleaning dry leaves off the tall beardeds, and trimming Spurias one to two inches off the ground.   Only recently I started to gradually give iris some water after not watering all summer. I do this for two reasons: first of all it's Southern California and water is expensive and in short supply with watering restrictions currently in existence; secondly, I have found that irises love their rest off water during the hot summer months. They like to gently bake under the sun, so no need to water tall bearded or Spurias here.

[Looking forward to 'GRAPETIZER' (Thomas Johnson, R. 2009). Will be planted in the next few days]

Change is in the air and irises are saying, "I wonder if I'll be blooming in the Spring." And this, will consist in most cases in food and water availability. Our summer, unlike the rest of the country has been a rather cool one, and even though we are three weeks away from fall, change is already in the air. So, my fall senses are telling me, "its time." It's time to start planning the spring garden.

[Two Spurias, properly shipped in wet material, are also waiting to be planted: 'REMEMBERING VIC,' and 'BLUE BUNTING.']

I start planning my spring garden with a map, a garden map. Do you keep a map of your garden? I started keeping one after I planted the one hundredth rhizome, and believe you me, I have referred to it many times over the years now that I have over three hundred. Garden maps are useful for different reasons. Sometimes, labels get stolen (yes, they do steel plant tags in this city) or get destroyed by people, or simply by dogs when their owners are not paying attention. Sometimes, if you are like me, you may like to refer to a particular iris in the middle of the night, so if you have a garden map, you don't have to run out in your jamas in the middle of the night. Whatever the case, garden maps are a second source of information for my garden, and I normally try to keep the map updated as I plant new rhizomes in the fall. I think I'm up to ten pages detailing my garden.

Garden Map 1

Garden Map 2

Garden Map 3 

Unlike my garden design, which is really abundant but complicated, and more geared towards an iris fanatic or collector, what do you think of the garden design below? It is so different, so uncluttered; pleasant due to its simplicity and because it was designed for our four-legged friends.

I hope you're enjoying your time back in the garden, as I am. W2Z5Q93J97S7

Late Summer Clean-up in the PNW

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It's been weeks of digging and dividing the overgrown iris beds in my garden and those areas are finally done and looking great. Unfortunately those areas that didn't need digging are looking pretty ratty from lack of attention. Altho rains stayed late into July this year, it's been weeks since they've had a good deep drink and the intense summer sun is taking its toll on the leaves that had grown during the cool, rainy days of spring. Above you can see how nice the clump looked in the early summer. While it is quickly dying back, smaller, tougher leaves will fill out once the autumn rains return to fuel additional growth before winter. Just look at this mess:


While folks in most parts of the country see their irises grow all summer long, mine will slow down unless I keep them watered, which I rarely do. Hopefully your iris beds aren't in nearly such a state. But if you are new to growing irises, have been too busy to get to the garden, and don't know what to do now, this is what late summer clean up looks like in my Pacific Northwest garden.

The first step is to remove all the dead brown leaves so we can see where the good green leaves are. I leave any green alone, but I do trim back the browning ends so most fans end up cut back when done. Here's the finished clump:


I had planted several rhizomes here and they've really increased the past two years. I have a new variety I want to tuck into this bed so I need to take part of this clump out to make room. My handy potato fork makes quick work of loosening the dirt and wheedling the rhizomes up out of the ground. You can see the original rhizome I planted and how it grew and branched over the years:


With a few snips of the clippers I have a small bunch of rhizomes to share with friends. Be sure to note the name on the fan. The old mother rhizomes without fans get tossed.


The next step is to amend the soil with some fresh compost and a little lime (we have very acidic soil), plant the new variety, and give the whole area a nice deep drink to settle it in and get new growth going. They'll have at least 8 weeks to root in before the first frosts arrive. This is important, as heaving from frost may damage the rhizomes and can leave it susceptible to rot in the spring. A little more clean-up in spring to remove fall's leaves and we're ready again for blooms.


Pictured: 'Calcutta', Kleinsorge 1938.

Yellow Louisiana Irises

Often, yellow Louisiana irises get too little respect. There was a day when they were rare and prized.Yellow is a recessive color in two of the five Louisiana species: I. fulva and I. nelsonii. At the height of the collecting days before 1940, it was a treat to discover a yellow fulva. It still is today.

Yellow nelsonii was even more rare, primarily because that species is limited to a few square miles southeast of Abbeville, Louisiana. At least for those collected irises that were subsequently registered, there were no more than a handful of yellows, but the yellow genes were there, lurking in the background of the red species and ready to burst forth in hybridizing.

The true yellow form of I. nelsonii appeared lost until recently rediscovered by Benny Trahan. It is the typical mustard yellow, perhaps with a hint of orange, in contrast to the lighter, cleaner yellow of most fulva examples. (Go here for links to the story of Benny's yellow nelsonii).

In fact there is a range of yellow shades in fulvas in the wild, from the clean light yellow of ‘Marvell Gold’, discovered in Arkansas, to the butterscotch of Steve Shepard’s ‘Lottie Butterscotch’, found a few years back near Lottie, Louisiana, due west of Baton Rouge.

The real reason for any lack of respect for yellow Louisianas has to be laid at the doorstep of I. pseudacorous, at least along the Gulf Coast. Here, where bearded irises are problematic and seldom seen, pseudacorous will flourish, even in areas where it has no business flourishing. It is an exotic species that, like Louisianas, enjoys a bayou or freshwater marsh habitat. It will escape, establish itself and crowd out other plants, including Louisiana irises. In a few areas, it is a genuine problem.

The gardening public sees pseudacorus all around. The yellow form of the species is nothing if not vigorous, so there is plenty available. Landscapers use it, even sometimes when they believe they are planting Louisiana irises. Many people picture pseudacorous even when talking about Louisianas.

The number one question iris society members are asked at gardening events, is, “Why aren’t my yellow Louisiana irises blooming?” This triggers a standard narrative: “Do your irises have a midrib? If so, they are not Louisiana iris... Don’t try to mix them with Louisianas... They are great for foliage, but in garden beds as opposed to water do not bloom as reliably as Louisiana irises… You might want to get rid of those (and good luck)... Try some Louisianas... Louisiana irises do come in yellow but also every other color and many forms and, by the way, are actually native."

If there is a pseudacorous anti-defamation league, I don’t mean to get it riled up. I respect all the iris cousins and their extended families. Some of the pseudacorous hybrids looks especially interesting and I would like to try them. But as I write from New Orleans, the Louisiana irises are closer kin. Brothers and sisters, tight family. Our native irises get priority over guests, especially ones that sometimes misbehave. But first and foremost, gardeners should know what they have, or might be getting, and make informed choices.

There are plenty of modern Louisiana hybrids that can satisfy any craving for yellow. Just a few of the good ones include Harry Wolford’s ‘Edna Claunch’ and new ‘Love Of My Life’; Patrick O’Connor’s ‘Rigolets’; and Heather Pryor’s ‘For Dad’. The yellow line is not hard and fast, and such blends as Dorman Haymon’s ‘Praline Festival’ and Wolford’s bicolor ‘Roar Of The Tiger’ show yellow joining with other colors in spectacular combinations.

Like all Louisiana irises, the yellow ones continue to improve, with more and larger flowers, improved substance, good form and various embellishments. They will bloom well in a normal garden bed and are good neighbors to other plants. Model citizens, with a tradition of southern hospitality and creole flair.

Exploring Iris History with Books

I love history, and I love collecting historic irises and preserving them for future generations just as much I enjoy reading about our iris history. If the heat has you stuck indoors, or maybe you want something to set aside for a cold winter's night, here are some classic iris books that are just the thing to get you dreaming of spring.

I'll start with Walter Stager's Tall Bearded Iris, A Flower of Song, from 1922. This book is packed with a thorough examination of the iris in story and song, with numerous quotes and citations. What a wonderful collection for those who enjoy literature, art, music and iris history - all rolled into one. This book is a singular work whose like has not been matched in all the decades since. There is always something to explore again in its pages.

Next is Rainbow Fragments, by J. Marion Shull, from 1931. This is one of the earliest books to contain color plates of iris flowers, along with many black and white photos. Mr. Shull was a noted irisarian and was very much into writing about the best irises of his day. This book contains many descriptions of selected varieties, along with some iris history, cultural and hybridizing information. It was one of the best books of its age and is a fun read too. Altho Mr. Shull has a very flowery and poetic way with words that is amusing from a modern perspective, it is full of great information and stories about the early 20th century hybridizers and irises.

In 1954 William J. McKee and Prof. J.R. Harrison published their book Half Century of Iris. This book, being a comprehensive history of iris development during the first half of the 20th century, is invaluable to the historic iris collector. Numerous histories of patterns and color development are accompanied by varietal family trees and biographical info. It was aimed at the hybridizer of the 50's looking to explore the future trends of development. This is one of my favorite books to just pick up and open at random to see what it is discussing. More often than not you'll see line breeding mentioned, as the merits of a scientific focus were the theme of the day and these authors thought highly of this method of advancement.

If you want something that is purely a delight to read for its easy, breezy and fun style find a copy of English hybridizer Harry Randall's Irises, from 1969. What a wonderful addition to your iris library this one is with so many stories and anecdotes about the history of irises after WWII in England and the US. Good advice is there too, but more than anything you'll enjoy the history and the forthright perspective of this master hybridizer during magical time in iris development. Mr. Randall's obituary in the AIS Bulletin by George Waters informs us:

It was Harry's practice to invite a few members of the BIS to his home in Beaconsfield to hear him read recently completed chapters of his book in progress. The guests were expected to offer criticism of the work, but Harry's formidable reputation tended to inhibit comment. My own attempts to meet his wishes on these occasions earned the gift of a carload of recently dug rhizomes. Harry's manuscript was almost complete when he died, and, with final details attended to by Mrs. Randall, George Preston, and other friends, Harry's Irises was published posthumously.

There are numerous books about irises produced from this time forward, but I think nothing has yet come out of interest to those into iris history to match the brilliant addition to the canon by Clarence Mahan in his 2007 book Classic Irises and the Men and Women Who Created Them. Here is a book I go back to time and time again. There is always something new in its pages to catch my interest and send me down a new path of discovery. This amazing work greatly expands our knowledge of the people behind the beautiful flowers we now treasure.

While these books are now out of print, it is fairly easy to find them offered at Amazon.com, Alibris, Abe's Books or other online book retailers. Sometimes hunting them down is almost as much fun as reading them. I hope you'll explore some of them and help keep the living memory of our favorite flower alive.

Iris Classics: 'Melodrama'

In 1956 the renowned Longfield Iris Farm introduced the latest sensation from the hand of master hybridizer, Paul Cook. 'Melodrama' was a spectacular flower, a bitone with light lavender standards that deepen at the midrib to the same dark lilac tone of the falls. It was an excellent new break in iris breeding and immediately started racking up awards.



It was given an Honorable Mention the year it was introduced, won the Award of Merit in 1958, and was a runner up for the Dykes Medal in 1961. Needless to say it was a very well regarded and very popular in its day.

Paul Cook had a long and fruitful career with irises and was instrumental in expanding many iris colors and patterns, but is probably best remembered for his work with the amoena pattern, culminating in a Dykes Medal for his masterpiece 'Whole Cloth' - which had been introduced the same year as 'Melodrama'.

Thanks to the hard work and dedication (some might say obsession) of Jerry Oswalt you can see the irises of Paul Cook at the Bluffton Memorial Iris Garden in Bluffton, IN. Jerry, along with local volunteers and descendants of the Williamsons and Cooks, has created a space in a local park along the Wabash river where they are collecting all the varieties from this amazing group of local hybridizers. 'Melodrama' is among them. There is also a display at the local historical museum about these iris luminaries.

All the wonderful traits that took the iris world by storm in the late 1950's are still there today in this wonderful historic iris. Seek it out and add a little history, and a lot of beauty, to your garden.

Midwest Drought Iris Issues

The summer of 2011 has been a very hard year for drought here in the midwest and the lower middle states. Texas and Oklahoma have set records for highest temps and longest running days over 100 degrees. We have been getting calls almost every day from our customers asking us if they should be watering their irises.

Here's my answer to that question and I hope it helps you a little. It is natural for most irises to go dormant in hot, dry weather conditions. We don't water our iris in the fields in any way during the summer months. We went for over 2 weeks here with daytime temps over 100 degrees and the irises are fine. If you were watering some as the drought progressed, it is probably ok to continue right on through the summer. I would have watered sparingly. Too much water in hot temps can and will sometimes rot the rhizomes. If you did not start out in early summer watering, I would not do so, until the temps begins to break. My thought is if you start watering too early in the hot temps, and the plants break dormancy too soon, you may burn the new growth up. The plants that have not been watered through this period will often look discolored and they will not have full fans. This is normal. The rhizomes have stopped growth and pulled the nurtients back to conserve energy.

We also get the question, "Will they die from this drought?" I doubt that there will be many losses, but it is possible that some varieties just won't take the weather and die. I am almost certain, that the losses will be minimal if the water issue is kept in check.

The water grown irises are the exception to these ideas. Water irises should not be allowed to dry out in any circumstances in droughts. Hard baked ground is a recipe for losses in these irises. I am guilty of letting them get pretty dry, but I always come through with a good watering before they it hurts them.

The photo I have posted is typical tall bearded clump that has been through the drought with no water except one 1/2 inch rain two weeks ago. The next day after the rain, the temps went to 104 degrees.

I hope this post makes a few of you sleep a little better helps you if you have not been watering and you need to know when to start again. God Bless you and your gardens. Please remember our troops and our befuddled government.

Respectfully,

Jim Hedgecock

Bloomin' Fools

'Kiss of Kisses' Reblooming Iris (Hybridized by Kerr, 1997)

Visitors to my garden are surprised by the irises. The comment I hear most often is "I thought they only came in purple!" followed closely by "they're not supposed to be blooming NOW, are they?"

'Beverly Sills,' an occasional rebloomer, (Hager, 1978) with 'Frequent Flyer' Reblooming Iris (Gibson, 1994) in July

In my Southern California garden, tall bearded irises bloom from March until January, thanks to reblooming varieties. Those of us who live in Mediterranean climates with very late or insignificant frosts can take advantage of the rebloomers to have irises as the main focus of our gardens, since they bloom practically year-round.

'Grand Circle' Reblooming Iris (Sutton, 2003)

Reblooming irises are not all created equal. Hybridizers strive to expand the color range and to create more beautiful forms of reblooming irises, but it is a tricky business. Some irises rebloom with great vigor and an abundance of blooms, others are quite stingy and may send up a single flower stalk out of dozens of fans every few years. Some bloom twice on the same plant, and some reproduce so fast that they send out new plants that bloom in the same season. Some have been known to bloom themselves right out of existence!


My best performer is, by far, 'Total Recall'. This iris begins blooming at the end of March and blooms right through to July, when it usually takes a little rest for about six to eight weeks, then it starts up again in September and blooms until frost in January. This year we have had an unseasonably cool summer, so it has not taken a break, and is in bloom right now.

'Total Recall' Reblooming Iris (Hager, 1992)



The Reblooming Iris Society, a section of the American Iris Society, has a web page that lists reblooming varieties of irises and the USDA zones in which they have been reported to rebloom. If you would like to introduce rebloomers into your garden, this is the place to start. You may also enjoy the Reblooming Iris Society Facebook Page, where lovers of these plants post information on what is reblooming where, and for how long.

'Frequent Flyer' and 'Lady Friend' occasional rebloomer (Ghio, 1980)

I am a newbie to the world of irises, and my experiences are limited to Southern California and to tall bearded irises. Do irises rebloom where you live? What kinds of irises do well there, and which are your favorites? My favorite is usually my newest. 'Rose Teall' (Holk 1995) opened yesterday for the first time, so it's my favorite today.



Many iris nurseries specialize in reblooming irises, so check the AIS website or do a Google search for commercial growers in your area.

"Are they supposed to be blooming NOW?" Yes! Plant reblooming irises suited to your area and enjoy the beauty and grace of irises, in every color of the rainbow, for weeks on end.

Classic Irises: 'Snow Flurry'

Hollywood has based a multitude of movies on the premise of the one-in-a-million long shot paying off and bringing the unknown little guy to the heights of fame and fortune. With 'Snow Flurry' the iris world has its own fairy-tale success story.

This amazing story was best told by Harry Randall in his terrific book Irises (Taplinger Publishing Co. Inc., NY, 1969 - Highly recommended!):

Amongst her early purchases Clara Rees had obtained Thais, a rosy-mauve diploid iris raised by Cayeux in France, with 24 chromosomes, narrow petals and drooping falls. Later on her sister, Ruth Rees, bought three other irises including Purissima, a tall, white tetraploid, for $18; and Clara thought, to quote her own words, that such extravagance proved that Ruth must have taken leave of her senses. However, Clara liked the colour of Thais and in due course she crossed it with the taller Purissima in the hope or getting the rosy-mauve colouring on to a tall stem and larger flower. The aim was an admirable one, but in the ordinary course of events any resultant seedlings would have been sterile triploids with a chromosome count of 36. There was a remote chance, however -- probably one in several thousand -- (a) that one of the pollen grains of Thais might have more than its usual quota of chromosomes, (b) that this grain might fertilize Purissima, and (c) that any seedlings might therefore be fertile tetraploids with 48 chromosomes.

Without knowing all this at the time, and with a boldness of which Sir Michael Foster would surely have approved, Clara Rees made her famous cross and succeeded in producing one solitary seed-pod. This pod, instead of containing, as expected, from 20 to 40 seeds, yielded only two, and one of these was so shriveled that it was promptly thrown away. The remaining seed was almost discarded because Clara Rees thought that there was no use bothering with a single one; but a spark of hope kindled the fire of compassion in the Rees household, the seed was saved and sown, and it ultimately proved of greater value than the Scriptural pearl of great price. If I were a parson I could preach a tremendous sermon on this historic incident!

In 1938, three years after pollination, the seedling gave its first flower -- not the rosy-mauve that had been hoped for, but a white slightly tinged with blue. One can imagine the delight and excitement of those who first saw the plant, winch had qualities not previously seen In a white iris -- broad, ruffled petals, clear hafts, several buds in each spathe, good branching and and excellent blue-green foliage. Nothing was done with the seedling in the first year of blooming except that it was dug up, split up, and the half-dozen resultant rhizomes replanted. Next year they all flowered and caused even more excitement. The two sisters decided that something ought to be done to enable other people to see the new arrival, and Clara afterwards wrote: 'Ruth felt that the bloom deserved the scrutiny of an experienced iris breeder, so she cut two of the individual blooms and traveled to Berkeley by street-car, train, ferry and taxi and showed them to Carl Salbach who at once asked, "Young lady, where did you get these?" Ruth told him that they had come from a seedling raised in the back yard of our home in San Jose.' Salbach quickly visited that back yard and bought the entire stock of Snow Flurry, which had then increased to 17 rhizomes, but he allowed the raiser to keep one rhizome.

Years later Ruth Rees wrote:

The next chapter of the 'Snow Flurry' story belongs to Orville Fay who, when he read the description in Salbach's catalogue, realized that if the parentage, Purissima X Thais, was true it would be a great breeder. He therefore asked his friend, Junius Fishburne of Virginia. who was attending an Iris Convention in California, to look at the plant and answer certain questions -- Were the spathes papery? Were there many buds in each socket? Was the foliage vigorous and blue-green? and so on. As the answers were all satisfactory Orville bought it, and we all know what he has done with it.

'Snow Flurry' went on to become perhaps the most celebrated parent in iris history. Thousands of iris varieties have these particular genes somewhere in their ancestry. It changed the course of iris breeding for generations and has left a legacy that others can only aspire to. And today, 'Snow Flurry' is still a fantastic garden iris and a fitting legacy to the ladies who recognized its potential.

[Update: photos previously posted with this article were mis-identified and have been removed. Images were of the variety 'Purissima'. - Mike]

Why attend a National Convention

I find that people who go to national conventions attend for different reasons. Some go to enjoy an outing to a favorite destination. Others, to see iris types they don’t normally grow, while others to see the same iris they grow at home and to find ways to grow them better.

(Above: 'She's a Doll" by Lynda Miller (R. 2010) at Hartley Park, Victoria, BC. You will not see MTBs like this in some conventions.)

Whatever the reason, I’m always amazed at the variety of people that comprises AIS, and their passion for irises. If you’ve been to a garden trek at your local club, you probably have observed all the friendly discussions that have turned up around our favorite plants. Well, I think those friendly discussions intensify at national conventions. Many of us become iris fanatics, and we could spend a serious amount of time observing a certain bloom, certain foliage, and discussing their many attributes, or perhaps find many faults. I think discussions, or call them arguments, are all good for our gardening society, as they are part of our educational process for better understanding iris growth habits, soil conditions needed for successful bloom, and for realizing better development of plants.

(Above: Unknow Pacific Coast Native Iris at Spiers Garden, Salt Spring Island, BC. You will probably not see these PCNIs at many conventions).

But for me, one great reason to attend national conventions is as follows. I love being around our older -- excuse me, more mature -- members. Many have grown irises for years and know exactly how to nurture each variety for thriving results. I love listening to their stories of past conventions, and their own conversations with hybridizers and growers.

(Above: Government House, Victoria, BC)

Just recently, one of them told me why she so endeared a certain garden visit she paid to Monty Byers, and how he was so special in her heart. It brought so much more meaning to my experience of observing Monty’s creations. Be it not for their shyness, we could find that these experienced members have a wealth of knowledge.

So, next time you attend a convention, perhaps CALIZONA GOLD 2012, establish a friendly conversation with AIS members, but specifically with "mature" members and you may just find something new about irises that you never new before.

Now, please tell me your reasons for attending an AIS national convention.

Iris Classics: 'Wabash'

Miss Mary Williamson was the daughter of famed iris hybridizer E.B. Williamson, so it is no surprise that she grew up to become a renowned hybridizer in her own right. Perhaps her greatest legacy is her 1936 introduction 'Wabash', a tall bearded variety that was the child of 'Dorothy Dietz' crossed with 'Cantabile'. 'Dorothy Dietz' had been a favorite of the amoena pattern for many years, and 'Wabash' was a very nice improvement. It was an an instant hit in the iris world and with gardeners everywhere, and remained on the top favorite's list for decades.


The flowers feature standards of clear white over falls of plush, velvety purple edged in white, with a bright golden beard accenting. The plant is hardy everywhere and an easy grower and bloomer, making it even more valuable to the gardener. It is one of the best of the amoena pattern and is especially beautiful in mass plantings


Above: Mr. W.J. McKee, President of AIS, presents the Dykes Memorial Medal to Miss Mary Williamson for her creation Wabash, which won top honors in 1940.


All the good qualities that won it so many awards are still present and 'Wabash' remains an oft sought favorite and keepsake of those who collect the old ones. If you seek it out be sure yours is correct, as the later introduction 'Bright Hour' was sometimes distributed under the name 'Wabash'. The true 'Wabash ' has purple based foliage - 'Bright Hour' does not. 'Wabash' is a true classic and a fit legacy for the life of a great hybridizer and irisarian.