1666 



IRIS 



IRIS 



the ground is flooded. When growth has ended the 



water is withdrawn." 



One of the most curious things in connection with the 

 Japanese iris is that though these plants have been in 

 cultivation here since soon after the treaty ports were 

 first opened, they seem to have excited httle attention 

 from gardeners until within a few years. Yet the first 

 importations were as handsome as the later. In this 

 connection it may be said that Japan has also /. gracili- 

 pes, a dark purple hardy form, and /. japonica or I. 

 chinensis, one of the beauties of the family but, Uke /. 

 teclonim (the roof iris), another crested kind, needing 

 here greenhouse protection and weU worth it. There is, 

 however, a perfectly hardy crested iris, the beautiful 

 dwarf /. cristata of the upper southern states — a charm- 

 ing plant for a front border or rockery. Equally dwarf 

 are our lake irises /. lacuslris and /. verna. 



The west coast of the United States is fortunate in 

 possessing some beautiful and distinct irises, mostly 

 of the wiry-rooted, thin-leaved type. They have not yet 

 been fully separated botanically, and they are most 

 difficult things to establish in eastern or other gardens, 

 so that there are really very few in cultivation. 



/. macrosiphon, I. Harhoegii, I. Doiiglasiana, I. 

 bracteata, I. tenax, I. longipetala, I. tenuis and /. 

 Purdyi is a hst which will interest the searcher after 

 interesting plants. Max Leichtlin, who has a genius 

 for growing difficult things, has been successful in 

 estabhshing I. bracteata, I. macrosiphon and /. Purdyi. 

 He says, "My experience is that they cannot be moved 

 unless in full vegetation. We must grow them from 

 seed, and not touch the seedhngs until they have 

 formed a soUd rootstock. After this and movement to 

 grow has begun, they can be safely handled and trans- 

 planted hke other irises." 



Seed should be sown in the open in autumn, plants 

 appearing in the spring should be undisturbed, and 

 in the fall covered with a frost-proof frame. They 

 should flower the second (or third) season. After flow- 

 ering they may be shifted carefully, but must always 

 have protection as they naturally commence to grow 

 very early and frosts are fatal to them. Only in this 

 way is there much chance of success with these rare 

 plants. Some of the species have been flowered here 

 under harsh conditions but they were survivals of large 

 numbers of collected plants. 



There remain to be considered two allied groups, the 

 oncocyclus and regeha. These are considered by ama- 

 teurs the most interesting groups of the iris family — in- 

 teresting in the amateur's vocabulary meaning some- 

 thing rare and difficult. At the best, these plants give 

 few flowers, but they compensate for this by their dis- 

 tinct and quaint beauty. The best^known member of the 

 family, /. susiana, has been in cultivation several hun- 

 dred years, but is by no means yet a common plant. It 

 takes more kindly to cultivation than any other of the 

 groups, will usually flower in the border the first year 

 after planting if the spring is not too rigorous; and 

 gardens are not unknown where, from some conditions 

 of fortunate placing or soil, they continue to flourish. It 

 cannot be said that there is any hard and fast formula 

 for growing these irises. They vary among themselves 

 as to their requirements, and need special and different 

 treatment in different gardens and climates. These 

 irises are natives of Palestine, Asia Minor, the Caucasus, 

 central Asia and Persia regions, all of which are hot and 

 dry in summer, with a settled and sometimes severely 

 cold winter and a genial spring. In some of the regions 

 they are protected by a covering of snow in winter while 

 dormant, but Palestine and Persia have open winters, 

 and their irises make growth at this time. After culti- 

 vating most of the species for a number of seasons, the 

 ^Titer's experience does not lead him to dogmatize 

 much on their cultivation or to approve of many special 

 devices which have been put forward from time to time 

 as the solution of the problem. The consensus of opin- 



ion among the growers who have had the best success 

 with these plants is about as follows, premising that 

 one is dealing with plants which are perfectly hardy: 

 The rhizomes are received with the Dutch bulbs in the 

 fall, at which time they are dormant and leafless. It is 

 well to store them in a cool place and plant out in 

 November in a bed of fairly hght and well-drained soil 

 in a border fuUy exposed. They require no protection, 

 but if the climate is one where frosts and thaw alternate, 

 it is weU to give the ground a covering while frozen to 

 keep it firm. The irises so planted will seldom spear 

 here till genial weather arrives, and with plentiful sup- 

 plies of moisture at the root wiU give flowers from 

 strong buds. After flowering, or, more accurately, 

 flowering time, one is forced to choose between two 

 methods of treatment. If the garden is high, dry and 

 hot, the best procedure is to cover the beds with a glass 

 frame sufficiently large to protect them from moisture 

 and allow the rhizomes to bake. This frame may be 

 removed in the late fall. If the leaves appear, as some of 

 them are hkely to do, they may be left unprotected 

 until very severe weather sets in, that is, usually in 

 December. Coal-ashes have also proved satisfactory, 

 though unsightly. Fohage does not seem to become as 

 soft under them as under leaves or mats. If the spring 

 is genial, with weather steadily becoming warm, the 

 plants, being uncovered as soon as the conditions will 

 seem to warrant, should be in the best possible shape to 

 reward one with their noble blooms. It is the lack of 

 this genial spring in the latitude of New York which, 

 however, leads often to cultural troubles. The leaves, 

 having been protected, are none too hard, and, with the 

 constant alternate thawing and freezing, and the high 

 winds, hot and cold, the plants need constant watch- 

 ing and application of needed covering till really genial 

 weather. Otherwise the fohage is bhghted and no 

 flowers are produced. The most satisfactory way, if 

 one is more interested in results than in garden prob- 

 lems, is to grow oncocyclus and regelia iris and the 

 numerous hybrids which are now available continuously 

 in a coldframe. The frame should be located where 

 drainage is perfect with no bottom moisture, so that 

 the plants may be kept perfectly dry and baking after 

 the blooming season. The plants should be protected 

 from hard freezing after leaves are formed, but should 

 not be protected enough to make them soft. The 

 trouble of this procedure is well worth while if one 

 wishes a rare display. 



In gardens which are low and never free from mois- 

 ture, the best procedure is that followed in Holland, 

 lifting the rhizomes in July and taking them under cover 

 in dry earth, planting out again in the fall. In this case 

 care should be used in hfting not to injure the numer- 

 ous fleshy roots. The Palestine and Persian forms of 

 these irises are considered the most difficult to cultivate, 

 from their habit of early growth. 



Irises are not only increased by the division of the 

 rhizomes or by offsets, but may be rapidly grown from 

 seed, which they usuaUy produce freely, though, in 

 most cases, they require artificial fertiUzation. A large 

 number of the common irises of gardens are hybrids, 

 and of late years a number of beautiful hybrids have 

 been produced between some of the rarer oncocyclus 

 species, and between these also and common forms, as 

 I. variegala, and so on. There are still opportunities to 

 produce many new and untried crosses, and experi- 

 ments in this line are recommended. The polhnation of 

 the iris is simple. The anthers should be removed when 

 the flower first opens, and preserved in paper or vials, 

 properly marked. The pollen will retain its potency for 

 a week or perhaps longer, and may be applied to the 

 stigma of the flower selected (the anther of which has 

 been removed promptly) with a camel's-hair brush. 

 The stigma will be found near the apex of the petal-hke 

 style, and is ready for poUination when the upper edge 

 drops down and exposes the upper surface. Many iria 



