204 



GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



Use and Arrangement of Bearded Irises 



THE choice of position in the garden for Bearded Irises 

 is a matter that depends to a very great extent on 

 the garden. ]t would be absurd to attempt to devote 

 a portion of a small or even a moderate-sized garden to 

 Irises exclusively. It is also unnecessary. \Miere space 

 permits it is a very excellent arrangement for many 

 reasons, but it must be remembered that, wonderful as is 

 the range of color and diversity of form, the flowering 

 period is restricted to certain months in the year, and that 

 when out of flower they are no more attractive than many 

 other plants that are just as indispensable. 



In gardens where space is limited there are two positions 

 in which they can be used successfully. One is in the 

 vacant spaces that always occur in the front of shrubbery 

 plantings. Bold masses planted in such ix)sitians are 

 always attractive during the flowering" period, and even 

 when there are no flowers the sword-like green or gray 

 foliage adds a useful note to the shrubbery. L'sed in as- 

 sociation with flowering shrubs they are most efl^ective. 



But whether the shrubs are evergreen or deciduous 

 flowering, the introduction of Irises among them will 

 always produce some wonderful eft'ects. 



The colors of the Irises have to be rightly chosen, and 

 either contrast or harmony can be achieved. There are, 

 for instance, some evergreen shrubs with cool gray foliage 

 at Iris-time. With these as a background it is impossible 

 to g'o wrong. The violet and blue shades of the Irises will 

 melt softl}- into the tone of the shrubs, or the warmer- 

 colored forms light up to more vivid splendor by virtue 

 of the contrast with the coldness of the shrulis' tones. 

 Wistarias grown as bush specimens also associate well 

 with Irises. 



Some gardens are too small to have room even for a 

 shrubbery that offers much opportunity for this sort of 

 treatment, but few are so small that they cannot afford 

 space for them in the herbaceous border. Nor is there 

 any place in the garden more suitable for them, and 

 startlingly beautiful effects can be obtained by associating 

 them with other perennial plants in this way. A May or 

 June border in which are planted groups of Irises in 

 jxjsitions in which they borrow from some plants or lend 

 to others some charm of combination is by far the happiest 

 result that can he achieved throughout the garden year. 

 \'ears ago, it was discovered that one of the best plant 

 combinations was Lupins and Irises. Since then IkjIIi 

 plants have progressed enormously in the color range 

 offered to the gardener. For some time it has been truth- 

 fully asserted that there is no other genus that has the 

 color wealth of the modern Bearded Iris, and now hybrid- 

 ists offer us Lupins of innumerable intermediate shades 

 ranging from pure white to black ])urple and maroon, 

 through every shade of pink, blue, violet, cream, buff, 

 orange and even crimson. Here, then, is a wealth of color 

 large enough to meet the most exhaustive demands that 

 may be made on it, and the garden-lover who cannot have 

 his or her heart's desire in color combination with them, 

 lacks the knowledge to choose the right material. 



It is all very well for some very good gardeners, both 

 amateur and jirofessional, to scoff as they do at what they 

 call "color facls in the garden." True, sometimes this color 

 arrangement is carried to extremes, and where harmony 

 is aimed at monf)tony is often achieved. I have heard it 

 argued that Nature never groups her colors. Nor does 

 she. Nature makes no attempt to harmonize the nnisic 

 of the woodland, such as the warbling of birds and the 

 sound of falling water. But in music the sounds are ar- 

 ranged, and in good painting the crude color is rejected 



and softened to fine harmony. All sound and all color is 

 of Nature, and it is only its selection and arrangement 

 that makes art. The very essence of good gardening is 

 that it selects, civilizes and arranges. 



So in planting the Bearded Irises, if by care in color 

 association the true value of the plants can be emphasized, 

 the delicacy of tone of some brought out, the vivid rich- 

 ness of others strengthened, this is assuredly desirable. 



In the bcrltaceous border every group of Irises should 

 form a selected picture. The potential variety of color 

 grouping is so great that it is impossible to particularize 

 in the present article, and in any case the selections for 

 color grouping must be left to individual desire. A group 

 of dark i)urple Lupins will suggest to some a splash of the 

 lirighter golden yellow Irises, to others a grouping of the 

 amber, bronze and copper tones. A group of pale yellow 

 Lui)ins will likewise produce in some a desire for the 

 combination of rose shades of Irises, in others the richest 

 of violets. The brighter, bluest violets of the Irises are 

 not good when planted in association with the bluest of 

 the Lupins. 



In the larger garden, wherever it is possible, the finest 

 results of all are obtained by devoting a portion to the 

 cultivation of Irises primarily, just as one does for Roses. 

 Gently undulating land, grassy paths winding between 

 banks of the glowing tints and exquisite forms of the 

 modern Irises, offer a realm of endeavor well worthy 

 of the most enthusiastic exploration. Informality in ar- 

 rangement is preferable and color grouping desirable, and 

 this is easy now that most catalogs divide the Irises up 

 into color groups and state height and tipie of flowering. 



One word of warning. There is a tendency to plant all 

 sorts of things in grass. ''Naturalizing" it is called, and 

 some very charming effects are obtained in this way when 

 the right material is used. Do not, however, do it with 

 the liearded Irises. It is not naturalizing them but mur- 

 dering them. They will not stand it, and if they are to 

 succeed the grass must be kept clear of their roots. So 

 long as the grass of the path is kept even a few inches 

 away they are happy. Another warning is, do not plant 

 them in dense shade and expect them to do more than 

 grow foliage luxuriantly for a time. To flower they must 

 have sunshine, and the more they get the better they like 

 it. — The Garden. 



THINGS AND THOUGHTS OF THE GARDEN 



( Continued from page 192) 



ber. 1 have used Achimenes in the same way and they 

 have flowered for months. Passers by would ejaculate, 

 "Look at the lovely baskets of petunias!" Petunias are 

 good basket plants, so are the trailing forms of blue lo- 

 belias, while nothing could be finer than the ivv leaved 

 geraniums, especially the pink ones. These arc not the 

 only flowering plants available by any means, but they in- 

 clude some of the better known sorts, (iivcn a generous 

 soil and plenty of water, basket ]ilants are a great asset for 

 use not rdone in the greenhouse, but in pergolas, ])iazzas, 

 and |)orches. Anyone who h;is tried one or two will want 

 more the following year. With window boxes and hang- 

 ing baskets a very sombre looking home can be wonder- 

 fully beautified. There are a number of foliage plants 

 well adapted for basket culture, amongst which are Eng- 

 lish ivy, Kenilworth ivy (which is fine grown with 

 fuchsias), Asparagus .Sprengeri, Coprosma Baueriana, 

 Tr;idcscantia, green and variegated \'incas. 



