Spring is obvious everywhere around here, but I was still surprised when I saw this iris blooming today. I like to dig abandoned plants out of ditches, roadsides, hedges etc when I come upon them--so I guess that's where this one originally came from. Is it really an iris?
Looks like an iris to me. Pretty color. I have white and lavender but they aren't blooming yet. I hope they don't yet because I need to get them moved.
Definitely an iris. Too bad we don't know which one. It's most lovely!
Beautiful iris. Wish I had access to that ditch. Mine are just before blooming.
Smokey, isn't it too early to move your iris? August is when I move mine. Hope someone will give us some good advise on this.
Now you have me wondering! My DS said I could move them anytime before they had buds. Why is August good?
Gessieviolet, is it this one, by any chance?
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/33210/
Mine are blooming now. :)
Deb
I grow Eleanor. She's nearly black falls and purple top. two tone. this one looks less black than her on my screen.
She's also got good form. this bloom looks fresh, but the form is all wrong for Eleanor. This one looks flat top form. six falls, no standards. Unless this bloom has started to decay? was that bloom in the photo fresh, gessieviolet? it's flopped.
the narrow falls tells me its really old, or from old genetics.
Smokey, I tried to figue why my antique brain said August. This is just what we have always done here on the coast and I know that it works. Check out this website and see if it is of any help to you. If anything, let them bloom before you move them.
Since you are in the Piedmont area, and I have a sister in Greenville who also says wait until August--- Magic month? Hope someone in your area will reply.
Good luck. Your Iris is beautiful.
http://www.clemson.edu/extension/hgic/plants/landscape/flowers/hgic1167.html
Bonjon, the blossom is 1 or 2 days old and it had been rained on quit heavily before I took the photo, but it pretty much looks the way it did the first day it opened. I agree that it probably is an antique; I love to gather older plants from around abandoned homesteads and such just to see what develops. l am about to have more blossoms opening in this clump in next few days, so we'll see if the form holds true. (What do you mean by "its flopped"?--the picture or the blossom?
Bonjon: I thought the same as you, but that the photo color might not be true and the blossom might have been a bit "tired" when it was shot.
If the color's true and that's a fresh bloom then, Bonjon's right, Gessieviolet, it's probably not Eleanor, because she is quite dark. It was the nearest I coulld think of that blooms this early.
Deb
BSD, thanks for the info. Smokey
yes, Eleanor is an IB and blooms this early.
DebinNC, I thought the same, but the bloom looks fresh enough in the photo. Rain would flop the standards down, but not like in the photo!
gessieviolet, on bearded irises, most are 3 standards, 3 falls. most "standards" are just that, they stand up. what I'm seeing here is no standards, six falls, and the style arms (which should be in the middle of the bloom vertically) are in the middle of the bloom horizontally. there is a subset that are called "flats or flat tops" with 6 falls, but there were not many of those in historic irises.
it could be a subset or species. I don't know those well at all.
Hmmmm, you know what this looks like? this looks like the seedling rejects hybridizers create by the thousands. in the ditch, it's quite possibly a natural seedling from an old TB. I've seen that most seedlings are composted because of poor form and flopped standards.
It's a perfectly good plant for you to transplant from the ditch if you like it. all that really matters is that you like it. but if you want to ID it further, look for historic bearded flat tops or some of the species.
sorry, I meant to say, I dig mine in August because in July, when most folks dig irises, it's just too darn hot, for me and for my irises. I'm zone 7.
Mystery solved. The new blossoms look exactly like they are suppose to. Guess the rains on the first just caused it to collapse. I just have an antique iris that blooms way ahead of my others. It's small, but a glorious reminder that it's newer cousins will be showing up in a couple of weeks in all their modern glory! What a tease! Can hardly wait.
IB (intermediate bearded) bloom 3 to 4 weeks ahead of the TB iris.
