124 THE IRIS. 



der division necessary every two years. The foliage is 

 good, and remains green until autumn, though all the 

 growth is made in early spring. Among these early-bloom- 

 ing species we may mention 



J. cristata. Flowers pale blue in May ; three inches 

 high. 



I. pumila. Flowers dark blue or white ; three inches 

 high. 



/. lutescens. Flowers yellowish white ; six inches high. 



We have in our garden a most beautiful variety of I. 

 pumila, which blooms rather later than the species, and 

 has dark-purple flowers, with a rich velvety lustre, with 

 shadings of orange-yellow. 



The species of bulbous iris most commonly grown are 



/. Xipliium. This species, commonly called the Spanish 

 iris, and often found in the shops under the name of Iris 

 Hispanica, is perfectly hardy in our gardens. The flowers 

 are very handsome, and of various colors, fragrant, and 

 freely produced. This species propagates itself readily by 

 offsets : it also ripens seed in abundance, and hybridizes 

 freely with the English iris. Indeed, the florists' catalogues 

 give us hundreds of hybrid seedlings, which are indiscrimi- 

 nately called English or Spanish iris. 



