Article courtesy of Iriswarehouse.com.




Want to impress your iris buddies with "iris speak"?  Do you know what "plicata" means?  How about "amoena"?  


Below are some of the terms that are important to those growing and purchasing iris.  Practice the lingo of iris and you will soon be rubbing shoulders with the best of the iris growers!

Have fun growing your iris plants!

Use your new terminology talent on the Smiling Gold Iris, Ernst (1991) above.  Beard color (?), standard color (?), falls color (?).  Send an email for answers!  Hint:  perhaps yellow!
photo copyright:  iriswarehouse.com

Descriptive Terms

Amoena — White standards, colored falls Beard — Grouping of hairs at the top of the falls. Beards may be a variety of colors. Bi-color — Light to medium standards, darker contrasting falls Bi-tone — Two tones of the same color Blend — Two or more colors blended together Falls — 3 lower petals of iris flower Flounces — Appendages extending from the tip of the beard like little petals Hafts — Top part of falls (area surrounding beard) Horns — Spears extending from the tip of the beards Luminata — Wash of color in falls with paler veining; clear unmarked area on hafts; usually paler edge to petals Neglecta — Blue standards, darker colored falls Plicata — Stippled or stitched margin color on lighter ground color Rebloomer / Remontant — Iris that blooms in any other season in addition to its normal spring bloom time; also called remontant Self — An iris of one's own color (i.e. only yellow bloom, no mixture of color) Space Ager  — Iris with flounces, horns or spoons Spoons — Spooned appendages extending from beard Standards — 3 upper petals of iris flower Style arms — Small stiff segments above the beards Variegata — Yellow standards, reddish colored falls All iris plants have 3 standards and 3 falls.

Daylilies blooming in fall in Michigan?

Article courtesy of Iriswarehouse.com


Daylilies blooming in September in Michigan


When purchasing daylilies,  don't forget to order some marked "L" or late blooming. In Michigan, some "L" daylilies can continue to bloom into September.  I have included photos of those still blooming on September 6th on a 50 degree morning in our Zone 5!  Robert Quasdorf is an exceptional variety.  It has bloomed continually for over a month and it's yellow lemon colored blooms are approximately 7 inches large! This variety is a Tetraploid and was introduced by Lee Gates in 1984.  (See a photo of this daylily below)

Robert Quasdorf Daylily:  copyright iriswarehouse.com

Another Hemerocallis that you should try which is still blooming (very late in the season) is Sandra Elizabeth. (shown below).  It is a 1983 Stevens tetraploid approximately 28" tall, with 6 inch blooms and yellow self.  Day after day Sandra Elizabeth is sending up wonderful blooms!  Mind you, it is September 6th in Michigan!  

Sandra Elizabeth Daylily:  copyright Iriswarehouse.com

So, please consider adding some late blooming daylilies to your garden to extend your daylily growing season.  You will NOT be disappointed!

Reblooming Iris


Here in Michigan (Zone 5), we are seldom treated to a fall blooming iris.  However, now with new hybridizing science, there are several varieties that are "reblooming" (or "remontant")! 
In the north, we now have a chance to see our beloved iris plants in the springtime and again in the fall!  Check for iris named, "reblooming".  (i.e. Immortality, Best Bet, Blue Suede Shoes, Cantina, Cloud Ballet, Concertina, Earl of Essex, Hemstitched, Jennifer Rebecca, Pagan Dance, Pink Attraction, Rock Star, Rosalie Figge, Stellar Lights, Summer Olympics, Victoria Falls, Violet Turner to name a few).  While there is no guarantee that your iris will rebloom in northern climates, it is exciting to try!


How to assist in allowing these varieties to grow in the fall again?  Trim the bloom off in the springtime when the iris has completed it's bloom.  At this time add an iris fertilizer (depending on your soil, of course!).  Fertilizers should be low in nitrogen (the first number in the three digit fertilizer number is nitrogen).  A 6-10-10 balance is good.  You may also fertilize with bone meal, or superphosphates.  We suggest that this be applied delicately in the soil around the rhizome. While you wouldn't necessarily water your iris regularly during the summer, if you wish reblooming iris, please water the rebloomers.  A drip system is the best and do not mulch the iris during the summer (as this encourages rhizome rot).  Good luck with your reblooming iris!

1920 Historic iris and the reblooming variety Summer Olympics

Types of Iris

This blogsite is provided as a courtesy from iriswarehouse.com

Types of Iris:

When I began collecting iris, I was mystified by the names of the iris types.  What was a miniature tall bearded iris?  How was this different from an intermediate iris?  So, I have provided a chart (below) which I hope will be helpful to you.    

Personally, I like all types of iris (I haven't seen an iris I didn't like!)  However, types of iris are important when designing your garden.  You may wish to keep dwarf and smaller bearded iris near the front of the garden so they are easier to see!  Also, if you wish to extend your  gardening season, you will want to have several of each of the types (i.e. dwarfs generally bloom earlier than the tall bearded iris).  Using various types of iris can extend your gardening floral display at least one month!  Adding siberian iris can extend your season even longer!  While many varieties are fragrant, some gardeners are convinced that the fragrance of the historic irises just can't be beat!  Happy gardening!

Types of Iris:

MDB – miniature dwarf bearded, to 8" tall, the first bearded to bloom in earliest spring
SDB – standard dwarf bearded, 8 - 16" tall, blooms in early spring
IB – intermediate bearded, 16 - 27.5" tall, blooms after SDB’s and before TB’s
MTB – miniature tall bearded, 16 – 27.5" tall, the flower is no more than 6" combined width + height, blooms with the TB’s
BB – border bearded, 16 – 27.5" tall, blooms with the TB’s
TB – tall bearded, more than 27.5" tall, blooms in mid to late spring

AR – or (A) - Aril Iris - this name refers to oncocyclus and regelia species
AB – Aril-Bred - an iris hybrid that is part aril and part bearded iris
AM – Aril-Med or Aril-Median - are shorter AR or AB iris
RE  – varieties that produce more than one crop of bloom stalks in a single growing season

HIS – Historic Iris cultivars are any iris introduced over 30 years ago

Pink Attraction Iris:  copyright, Iriswarehouse.com