IRIS 



THE BULB BOOK 



IRIS 



I. vaga. A Kegelia Iris, native of 

 Turkestan, with stolon-bearing root- 

 stocks, erect curving leaves, and 

 yellowish, purple, and brown - red 

 flowers (Gartenft. 1244, f. 7). 



FIG. 218. Iris unguicularis. 



I. variegata. A very handsome 

 Austrian Iris of the germanica group, 

 with tufts of sword-like leaves 12 to 

 18 ins. long, purple at the base. 

 Flowers in May and June; falls ob- 

 long, narrowed at the base, deep 

 claret-brown, with a bright yellow 

 beard and brown veins on a yellow 

 ground; standards erect, oblong, 

 bright lemon-yellow. (Bot. Mag. t. 

 16 ; Red. Lit. t. 292.) 



There are many beautiful forms 

 having various shades of yellow, 

 bronze, and purple predominating; 

 although alba, with white flowers, is 

 an exception. 



I. Vartani. A curious little bulb- 

 ous Iris from the neighbourhood of 

 Nazareth, with ovoid netted bulbs, 



and four-sided horny-tipped leaves 

 4 to 6 ins. long at the time of flower- 

 ing. Flowers 3 to 4 ins. across, 

 appearing about October. The pre- 

 dominating colour is slaty blue or 

 dull lavender; the falls having a 

 yellow or white blade with black dots 

 on the claw. (Bot. Mag. t. 6942.) 



I. verna. A beardless Iris from 

 the S. United States, about 1| ft. 

 high, with narrow finely-veined 

 leaves and deep violet flowers, having 

 an orange keel to the falls. The 

 leaves persist during the winter. 



I. verslcolor. A beautiful beard- 

 less Iris from N. America, with 

 rather glaucous sword-shaped leaves 

 and clusters of large claret-purple 

 flowers, borne in May and June, on 

 stems 1 to 2 ft. high. The standards 

 are paler in colour than the much 

 larger falls, which are beautifully 

 veined with deep purple. (Bot. 

 Mag. t. 21.) There is a good deal 

 of variation in the colour, and several 

 forms exist, that known as kermesina 

 having lilac standards and reddish- 

 lilac falls net-veined with white. 



Iris virginica is considered to be 

 a form of this, having bright lilac 

 flowers (Bot. Mag. t. 703). 



I. Warleyensis. A native of E. 

 Bokhara, related to /. orchioides 

 ccervlea, from which it differs chiefly 

 in the colour of the flowers, in which 

 shades of violet predominate. The 

 falls are deep violet with a bright 

 orange crest. (Gard. Chron. 1902, 

 xxxi. 386, f. 134 ; Flora and Sylva, 

 December 1905.) 



I. Willmottiana. A native of E. 

 Turkestan closely related to /. 

 caitcasica, but with lavender (not 

 yellow) or pale purple flowers blotched 

 with white (Gard. Chron. 1901, xxix. 

 261, f. 100). 



I. xiphioicles (/. anglica ; I. pyren- 

 aica; Xiphion latifolium), English 

 Iris. A beautiful Pyrenean Iris hav- 



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