If you have been to my site before and wish to skip this narrative and go straight to my pictures click here.
Throughout History, the gorgeous Iris has been heralded as the flower of Kings and priests. Since the dawn of recorded history, the Iris has symbolized the ultimate beauty of nature. And no wonder! Just look at the exquisite form, the brilliant color, the natural beauty of the iris. Four thousand years ago, the Iris was the flower of prince and priest in Crete, In ancient Greece, the Iris was the personification of the goddess Iris. In Biblical times, Solomon's famous "lilies of the field" are believed to have been Iris pseudacorus. My mother called them flags. In my garden, I just call them my "showgirls".
You will find several kinds of Iris, but in most cases I will be referring to the beautiful bearded Iris. They have been a favorite flower of mine from a very early age. I remember them from my childhood where they grew without limits on the hill beside my house. They were a two-toned purple and I fell in love with them at first sight. They most likely were some form of i. Germanica.
The Irises of today have come a long way from those first Irises I fell in love with. As you can see, there is a color to suit everyone. They have ruffles and speckles and some are reblooming Irises. That has always been the most common complaint of gardeners, that Irises just don't bloom often enough. Hybridizers are addressing that complaint with new varieties that bloom throughout the year. I have had very few irises that have actually rebloomed. Irises need a cool period to prepare for rebloom. Unfortunately my part of Texas is a land of extremes. Our summers usually end with a hard freeze that nips any buds that may be forming.
I do not know the names of all my Irises. Some I have given my own name. Many of them were bought from a not so reputable dealer and probably were not the iris advertised.
2003 was a big year for my iris bed. I added many new irises in the fall of 2002 and most of them bloomed in the spring of 2003. Then late in the fall of 2003 I added a lot more irises. I will be adding pictures as I have time. Below is a table of my iris. As I add pictures, the links will become active. Many of these are new iris that I do not yet have a picture of. Some of them didn't bloom in 2004 or 2005 and will have to wait another year for a picture.
If you would like to start at the beginning in alphabetical order CLICK HERE If you have a specific iris in mind, check the list below. If you have a specific color in mind, check the color list.
<
Black
