Louisiana Irises Create many Buena Vistas

by Ron L. Killingsworth in NW Louisiana

Every year during "bloom season", when the Louisiana irises are blooming, I always take hundreds of pictures of the iris blooms.  Last year I decided to take more "view" pictures with some of the beautiful parts of Caddo Lake and Plantation Point Nursery in the background.  I was quite pleased with the outcome and hope that you enjoy these "good views". You can learn more about Louisiana irises at the Society for Louisiana Irises web site.

'Ardoyne' by Joe Musacchia (2003

This picture of 'Ardoyne' was taken by the Koi pond which is full of beautiful Japanese Koi.  There is an island in the middle of the pond (tank for your Texicans) and the two large "crane" birds stand on the island and give the fish something to think about.  'Ardoyne' was named by Joe for the Ardoyne Plantation Home in Houma, LA, where Joe lives.  Houma is south of New Orleans!

Louisiana irises grow in a small pond

Louisiana irises are quite happy growing in water.  In this picture they grow in a small pond that we modeled after Marie Caillet's famous pond in Little Elm, TX.  The bridge is made of bamboo as we have a large stand of bamboo on the property.  It will support people!  Bamboo is used in many parts of the world as scaffolding.

'Black Widow' by W. B. MacMillan 1953

'Black Widow' is one of my favorite Louisiana irises.  It is the older open form and is one of the darkest Louisiana irises.  It is an early bloomer and this photograph shows a nice clump of it with Caddo Lake and bald cypress trees in the background.

Louisiana irises grow by Caddo Lake

Caddo Lake in NW Louisiana is in the "Ark-LA-Tex", where AR, LA and TX all meet.  It is a natural lake and there is much discussion concerning the way it was formed.  Caddo Indians left a rich heritage in this part of the country and the parish (county) is named for them.  Again, bald cypress trees grow in the water.  The trees produce tannins that make the lake water very dark.

'Her Highness' by Levingston 1957

'Her Highness' is a collected I. giganticaerulea alba and is a beautiful white iris that grows very tall.  Another favorite, it stands out in a crowd!  A small pond is in the background and my sister grows fresh water shrimp in this pond.

Louisiana irises in a "clump"

A large group of multicolored Louisiana irises can really be breathtaking.  We are commercial growers and most of our irises are in four feet by four feet beds by variety.  We purposely made some beds with many different colored irises which are unnamed and for viewing pleasure only.

'Fringed Gold' by D. L. Shepard 1992

'Fringed Gold' is a beautiful Louisiana iris and in this picture a large clump in full bloom shows the Koi pond and birds in the background.  My sister's home is in the distance.

"May pops" grow in the ditches of Northern Louisiana and as children we used to eat them when they ripened.  They have a beautiful bloom.  I posted this on the web and received pictures of many different varieties from around the US.

Louisiana irises in full bloom near Caddo Lake

This is a group of 100 four by four beds down near the lake.  We have irises growing in just about every conceivable method.  These are in dug beds lined with plastic and irrigated from the lake.

Louisiana irises - a group of "Professors"

Professor Joe Merzweiller, a college professor at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, LA in the 50's and 60's, was the first to produce a tetraploid Louisiana iris through chemical conversion.  He then hybridized these irises and produced 10 registered Louisiana irises named for his professor friends -- Professor Jim, Professor Ike, Professor Marta Marie, etc.  Tetraploid Louisiana irises tend to grow taller and have larger blooms.

Greenhouse at Plantation Point Nursery, Mooringsport, LA

This picture shows a group of Louisiana irises growing next to the Koi pond and the greenhouse in the background.  The huge "sandstone" rocks on the left were dug up on the property and will one day be part of a "water feature" on this pond.

Louisiana irises in full bloom

"Professor somebody" in the front with 'Her Highness' in the background.  The white object in the far background is the gate onto the pier that goes out 150 feet into Caddo Lake.

Louisiana iris view

This picture shows a group of Louisiana irises in full bloom with the "fresh water shrimp" pond in the background and Caddo Lake in the far background.

Louisiana irises on Caddo Lake

Another bunch of "Professor Somebody" (maybe 'Professor Jim') growing near the lake.  The group of yellow irises in the middle background are iris.pseudacorus, a native of Europe, that grows great in water. Unfortunately this iris is often sold by nurseries as Louisiana irises and are often used by landscape companies when planting irises in the landscape.  They are very invasive!  The background shows the pier and boathouse behind the bald cypress trees.

Louisiana irises in a clump

This picture shows a large clump of white Louisiana irises with Caddo Lake and the bald cypress trees in the background.  I failed to note the name of the iris but here they are just a part of a "Buena Vista".

Louisiana irises growing near Caddo Lake, Mooringsport, LA

Another group of Louisiana irises in full bloom with a great picture of the edge of Caddo Lake and bald cypress trees in the background.  Caddo Lake is a 25,400 acre lake and wetlands that is located in NW Louisiana and NE Texas. The lake is named after the Southeastern culture of Native Americans called Caddoans or Caddo, who lived in the area until the 19th century.

Louisiana irises with mixed colors in full bloom on Caddo Lake

Louisiana irises grow in the edge of a pond in NW Louisiana

These Louisiana irises are some of my "babies" (irises I hybridized) that I did not want to keep for registration and/or introduction.  They were great irises but not worthy of registration.  I planted them in the edge of the "fresh water shrimp" pond and each year I see at least one that I think I should have kept and registered!

'Our Friend Harry' by Ron Killingsworth 2011

Well, I had to put at least one of my "babies" in this blog.  This is 'Our Friend Harry' and is named for a good friend and former president of the Society for Louisiana Irises, Harry Wolford of Palm Bay, FL. This is by the Koi pond and again you can see the large birds on the island and the arched bridge.

A very "tall" Tall Bearded iris

This is one of Sue's (my wife) old species of Tall Bearded that grows well in Louisiana.  Usually it is too hot and wet for Tall Bearded irises to do well in Louisiana (or in much of the subtropical south).  This one is in a shaded area and grew quite tall, some 52 inches!

If you are interested in learning more about Caddo Lake, please visit their web site at Caddo Lake.
To learn more about all types of irises just browse over to The American Iris Society web site and check it out!

Extending the Louisiana Bloom Season with Companions for Louisiana Irises

By Ron Killingsworth

We grow thousands of Louisiana irises here, many spuria hybrids, iris virginica, twenty or so hybrid tall bearded irises, some really old "hand me down" tall bearded irises, some species crosses and lots of Dutch irises.  But we also grow many other beautiful plants.  You can extend your gardening season with judicious choices of spring bulbs, flowering trees, and other perennials that bloom before and after the irises.  Here at our gardens in Louisiana, springtime starts with the blooming of narcissus, snow flakes and grape hyacinths, continues with the daffodils and Dutch irises.  

Narcissus with Snow Flakes (leucojum vernum) in background

Daffodils

Flowering Quince is another early spring bloomer and we have several plants in the front and side yards.

Flowering Quince

One unusual tree that blooms early in this area is the redbud tree, which puts out its blooms before the leaves. Vivian, LA, just north of us, has the "Redbud Festival" each spring as these trees bloom.

Redbuds

Another early bloomer, blooming in NW LA at the end of February, is an old species of tall bearded iris that are handed down through the generations.  Every time I give a talk on growing irises, at least one person will comment "I grow the purple one" and this is the pass-along flower they mean.  

We also grow iris virginica in blue, white, and pink.  

iris.virginica white

iris.virginica "big blue"

iris.virginica pink

Another wonderful little plant that produces massive amounts of bloom each spring is "Johnny Jump Ups".  These little flowers are appropriately named because once you plant some, they "jump up" all over the place!  They are ideal with irises since they cover the ground with color without smothering rhizomes.

 "Johnny Jump Up" Violas

The Spuria irises usually bloom about the same time as the LA irises.  

LA Iris 'Adell Tingle'

Spuria irises 

An unusual iris we grow is 'Aichi-no-kagayaki' (Shinnosuki) a species cross that blooms late in the season, not until June.

'Aichi-no-kagayaki' a species cross

Close up of 'Aichi-no-kagayaki' which has Japanese iris in it.

In June, the Amaryllis bloom.  We grow many different hybrids of Amaryllis.  My sister has been crossing them and producing new varieties.

Amaryllis

My wife Sue loves Angel Trumpets in white and yellow.  These beautiful huge blooms are about the last bloom we see before the first freeze of the year.

Angel Trumpets (brugmansia) 

Angel Trumpets

These are a few of the blooming plants we use to extend our bloom season here in Northwest Louisiana.  What plants do you use along side of your irises to create a long bloom season?

New Digital Programs for LA and Spuria Lovers

By Andi Rivarola

I bring you good news from the digital presentation world. Two new digital programs are available for Louisiana and Spuria iris lovers. The Society for Louisiana Irises created a program called, "Growing Louisiana Irises," and the Spuria Iris Society put together the "2013 Spuria Digital Program."

Growing Louisiana Irises

Wonderful images of Louisiana irises in the wild as well as in gardens are part of this exciting new program. The goal of the program is to show your audience the "how-to's" of being successful at planting, growing and preparing the soil to grow these beauties. Also, the presentation has detailed information about soil requirements, flower parts (image below), and species and LA iris types are explained. We can say with confidence that this presentation will leave you and those in your audience with plenty of reasons to include Louisiana irises in your garden.

Technical Notes: this presentation has 80 images; it can mailed to you as a CD, or emailed too. You will need the computer program, PowerPoint Presentation. For more information and to obtain a downloadable order form check the AIS website: AIS Slides and Digital Programs

Sample Digital Image of LA Irises

Spuria Iris Digital Program 2013

The Spuria Iris Society digital presentation is very unique in that it shows the huge variety of colors and forms available today. The presentation is mainly composed of a huge variety of predominantly single Spuria iris flower images that will open your eyes to the many possibilities that exist in this beardless beauty. From browns, to blues, yellows and now also very dark or pink Spurias, there will be some that you'll fall in love with.

Technical Notes: The program contains over 150 images, with over 130 of them being unique iris varieties. It is available digitally via Google Drive or Dropbox, and once you pay for it via Paypal it can be in your email inbox the same day. Check the Spuria Iris Society website for more information: 2013 Spuria Iris Digital Program

Singular Spuria Iris Images

If you are able, please support these societies by becoming a member, or share this information with your family and friends who love irises. 

"Talking Irises" TALL BEARDED IRIS AND COMPANION PLANTS

By Susanne Holland Spicker

One of the most enjoyable aspects of growing TALL BEARDED IRISES is the countless ways we can use them in our gardens. Using a variety of COMPANION PLANTS for texture, shape, height and color can enhance the beauty of a garden. And, since the color range of irises rival nearly all plants--available in every imaginable hue, tone and color of the rainbow except maybe a true red--the possibilities are endless!

By using the early, mid and late blooms of the irises, there are several plants that fit into their window of bloom. For instance, the last of the single late tulips, or the first blooms of the hybrid tea roses overlap the early and late iris blooms. The colors, height and form of lupine add interest to the bed and are a favorite of mine to use because their bloom time perfectly coincides with the iris bloom time. Peonies, both tree and herbaceous, as well as poppies, are also favorites. Other perennials I have used successfully in the iris beds have been allium, clematis, columbine, dutch iris, foxglove, delphinium, lilacs, and even early gladiola, whose corms have over-wintered and start their growth early before I start planting new ones that will flower much later in the season.  The good things about all of these perennials is that their growing conditions are compatible with the conditions needed for tall bearded irises.

The regal colors of "CHERRY BLOSSOM SONG," "TIMELESS MOMENT," "MULLED WINE," "CHANGE OF PACE," "KITTY KAY," and "ARTIST'S TIME,"  with companion plants of lupine, peony and poppy provide an eye-catching bed

This pink bed uses the subtle and delicate tones of pinks and whites. Clematis, poppies, peonies, gladiola, foxglove, and a variety of lupine in shades of pink and white go well with irises "EMBRACE ME," "ELISA RENEE," "LACED COTTON," "POND LILY," and "DATE BAIT"

The striking colors of "SKATING PARTY," "THROB," "LATIN LOVER," "STARSHIP ENTERPRISE," "RINGO," "VIZIER," and "SALZBURG ECHO," are complimented in this bed with peonies, lupine, pansies, monarda, and the last blooms of forsythia, lilac and snowball bushes.

This bed of irises "PLANNED TREASURE," "MARY FRANCIS," "BUBBLING OVER," "COMING UP ROSES," and "POEM OF ECSTASY," with the complimentary colors of peach/pink and lavender/lilac contains poppies, itoh peony, delphinium, early gladiola, lupine and verbascum.

When planning the beds, I look for companion plants that are relatively easy to grow, are hardy and reliable, and plants that look their best with minimal care. Keep in mind the growth of your irises and the room they need to establish a nice clump.These plants have worked well for me. But, as you plan your beds, don't be afraid to experiment. If it doesn't work, you can always move the plants around.  

What companion plants have you used in your iris beds? I'd love to hear what has worked well for you! 

Planning and Luck In The Iris Garden

By Griff Crump

Not all good results come from planning.  Sometimes, they are just gifts.  But in either case, we should be grateful.

Looking around among my seedlings, I find instances of both, sometimes in combination.

When I first saw 'Lumalite' (J. T. Aitken, R. 1995) at an iris show, I was so taken by its glowing appearance that, with the exhibitor's permission, I took it outside into the daylight to see if the effect lasted.

'Lumalite'

I acquired it as soon as I could, and crossed it with, among others, 'What, Again?'. 

'What, Again?'

I confess that I had no plan at this point --  just curiosity to see what the glowing effect of one combined with the curious color composition of the other would produce.  What I got was a gift: 'Elfin Sentinel'.

'Elfin Sentinel'

I was delighted with the flower and registered it, but it had a shortcoming (literally) that caused me not to introduce it:  The bloom barely topped its foliage.  Looking at its brilliant colors and clear patterning, however, I wondered what a back-cross to its parent 'Lumalite' would bring.  For one thing, I wondered if the slight blotchiness of 'Lumalite''s falls could be erased.   And it worked!  The new seedling retained 'Lumalite''s glowing heart, cleaned up the falls almost entirely, and added ruffles.  I introduced it as 'Bright Sprite'.

'Bright Sprite'

'Tis said that ignorance is bliss.  I can attest to that.  At a meeting of one of our iris societies several years ago, two good long-time hybridizers of my acquaintance were discussing the rebloomer 'Best Bet' (Schreiner's 1988) and the difficulty of keeping it alive (at least, in our area).  Both agreed that they would never use it in hybridizing, because of that fault.  I said nothing, since I already had a cross from 'Best Bet' that hadn't yet bloomed.  When it did bloom, it was a perky, hardy little border bearded amoena that, because of its colors and its parent's unhappy reputation, I registered as 'Against the Tide'.

 'Against the Tide'

Because of 'Against the Tide''s hardiness, I never feared to use 'Best Bet' in my breeding, and it is in the background of a number of my introductions, including  'Deep Purple Dream', the rebloomer 'Haunting', Ranks of Blue', 'Royal Pageantry' and a very prolific 2013 offering, 'Night Bird':

'Deep Purple Dream'

'Haunting'

'Ranks of Blue'

'Royal Pageantry'

'Night Bird'

And if one looks in the Iris Register at the 64 other entries involving 'Best Bet', it's obvious that many other hybridizers, as well, were either unaware of or undaunted by 'Best Bet''s bad press.
 

Another example of when the planning worked was the crossing of Barry Blyth's 'Knighted' (1987/88) with seedling 962N: (952Y3: (Champagne Elegance x 93L1: (Wabash x yellow Wabash sdlg.)) x Best Bet).

'Knighted'

Sdlg 962N

With strong amoena heritage on both sides of this cross, I looked for an amoena outcome, and wasn't disappointed.  Besides 'Royal Pageantry', which we have seen above, a near twin, Seedling 02S2, was produced.  I hesitated to introduce two such similar flowers, but have reconsidered, since garden visitors want it.  So, I plan to introduce it shortly.  Two photos of 02S2 follow:

Sdlg 02S2

Of course, a plan doesn't always work.  I had great hopes for the cross of 'Aura Light' (Blyth, R. 1993) by 'Romantic Evening' (Ghio, R. 1994).  The broad, flared, well-ruffled falls of both, with their heavy substance and bold colors, and the heritages suggesting the possibility of an amoena . . .

'Aura Light'

'Romantic Evening'

. . . and yes!  The cross produced amoenas 01S2 and 01S3, so alike that I can only tell them apart by keeping their plantings well separated, with rich, overlapping broad mahogany red falls  ---

Sdlg 01S2

Sdlg 01S3

--- BUT . . . 'Aura Light', for all its spectacular bloom beauty, is just a tad short in stature, and it passed it on to its kids, so that, in my estimation, these two seedlings don't have quite the proportion of height to bloom size that they should have for introduction.  But, with planning and and a bit more luck, do I hope that they'll still figure in something beautiful?  You betcha!

Favorite Iris Introductions of 2013

By Renee Fraser

A while back, I promised to tell you about some of the most popular new introductions for 2013.  I know it is late in the season, but I'll continue the series anyway so that you can add to your lists for next year. So here is another 2013 favorite of irisarians, this time from Rick Tasco of Superstition Iris Gardens in Cathey's Valley, California.  Rick says "our 2013 introduction that has been drawing the most interest and the most sales has been "Molten Flame."  It is 34" tall and is heavily ruffled with an intense red orange beard.  It has up to 10 buds, with triple sockets at times.  It is a cross between one of my Dykes Medal winners ("Golden Panther") and a brilliant intense orange seedling by Ben Hager.  Ben gave us that orange seedling before his death and we've been working with it for years trying to capture that shocking intense brilliant orange color, which has to be seen to be believed.  Recently we've been getting close to that color in a proper flower and "Molten Flame" is a result of that breeding.  It has taken many years and different crosses to get all the proportions right because Ben's seedling is too short to be a Tall Bearded and the flower is too big for it to be a Border Bearded, that it why it was never introduced either by Melrose or by Cooley's after Ben's passing.  "Molten Flame" finally is tall enough at 34" with a heavily ruffled moderately-sized flower.  "Golden Panther" helped by passing on its superior bud count."

"Molten Flame" Tasco, 2013 Photo Credit Rick Tasco

"Those of you who have visited our garden have undoubtedly seen the Hager seedling.  At times, we try to "hide" it in the seedling patch because everyone always asks about that "orange flower".  It can be easily spotted in a crowded seedling bed.  We will continue to work with it and see what else develops."

Bright orange tall bearded irises are few and far between, so we are quite excited about this break in color.  I love orange and use it extensively in the garden, so I look forward to seeing this iris in person.  Do you grow orange irises?  Which ones?