DIFFICULT IRISES 93 



obtain a satisfactory form of this Iris is to beg or buy a 

 plant when it happens to be encountered flowering pro- 

 perly. Besides ensuring the acquisition of a free flowering 

 variety, this plan has the additional merit of leading to 

 the transplantation of the plant at the season when success 

 is most probable, namely, when the plant is in full growth. 



In gardens where the soil is a cold, wet clay, great 

 difficulty is often found in inducing /. unguicularis to 

 flower an Iris popularly known by the incorrect name, /. 

 stylosa. The best hope of success would be the con- 

 struction of a raised bed against a wall facing south. It 

 need only consist of a small heap of light soil, containing 

 by preference plenty of old mortar rubble. This can be 

 supported and edged with a few large stones in such a 

 way as to assure good drainage. The plant does not need 

 rich soil. In it, indeed, its growth is phenomenal, and in 

 inverse proportion to the number of flowers produced. 



Another difficult species is /. hexagona, from swampy 

 ground in the Southern United States. It needs warmth and 

 space, for its rhizomes run straight ahead for a considerable 

 distance. One of the few places where it flowers well in the 

 open is in a sheltered border between two of the glass- 

 houses in the Cambridge Botanic Garden. 



A near neighbour of /. hexagona is the somewhat un- 

 common I. fulva, which is distinguished from all other 

 Irises by the terra-cotta colour of its flowers. Although 

 it comes from the swamps of the South-eastern States, and 

 although in a hotter climate than ours, as, for instance, on 

 the Mediterranean coast of France, it will flower well when 

 actually grown in water; with us it needs a hot and dry 

 position if it is to produce its extraordinary flowers in any 



