1 FOR BOTH AMATEUR AND PROFESSIONAL f 
I GROWERS OF THE GLADIOLUS, DAHLIA, IRIS, ETC. f 
Entered as second-class matter March 31, 1914, at post office at 1 
Calcium, N.Y., under act of March 3, 1879. 
! PUBLISHED MONTHLY ON THE FIRST OF THE f 
! MONTH BY MADISON COOPER, CALCIUM, N. Y. I 
Subscription price : Three years. $2.00; One year, $1.00. 
IRISES OF FRENCH ORIGIN. 
[Written expressly .for The Flower Grower.] BY ROBERT S. STURTEVANT. 
A NOTE on some 
of the newer 
Bearded Irises of 
F r e n ch origin 
may be of interest. In 
the fall of 1918 I re- 
ceived a collection of 
about fifty varieties and 
these together with a 
number of others 
bloomed sufficiently 
well for a flower com- 
parison at least, though 
many undoubtedly will 
prove more worthwhile 
in mass or as a well de- 
veloped clump of two 
or three years stand- 
ing. 
In France whose 
nurserymen are so 
noted for horticultural 
developments in many 
lines, the Iris has re- 
ceived its meed of at- 
tention and Alcazar, 
Monsignor, Oriflamme 
and others, all intro- 
duced by Vilmorin, have 
done much to raise the 
standard. In the past 
Verdier, Cayeux, Crous- 
se, and Lemoine, are 
known, but at present 
Millet, Denis, and Vil- 
morin, Andrieux et Cie, 
are more closely con- 
nected with the Iris. 
As far as my records 
permit I shall consider 
the varieties from the 
same source as many 
of them do not lend 
themselves to the old 
group classification, 
particularly when 
blended, but far from 
squalid shades should 
be grouped under squa- 
lens. 
M. Denis is a private 
grower, certain of 
IRIS-PAtf/SMWA. 
(Two-thirds full size.) 
whose productions may 
be found in our cata- 
logues ; Dalila, a vel- 
vety pink toned bicolor 
flushed with yellow is 
less attractive than it 
sounds; and Troost, 
Our King, and M. Aym- 
ard, of deepening old 
rose tints are not unlike 
Her Majesty in tone ; 
Romeo is bright yellow 
with short vivid veins 
of purple below the 
beard, distinct but to 
me unattractive, and 
there are a whole group 
of madames, all plicatas 
but variously sanded 
and veined rather than 
bordered as in Mme. 
Chereau or Ma Mie, 
(Verdier). Many of 
them are decorative but 
in the garden their col- 
or does not carry well. 
Mme. Boullet is veined 
with dull violet, the 
cream ground flushed 
with lavender, Mme. 
Bates is not unlike, 
though clearer, with 
dull red reticulations 
and a tinge of mauve; 
in Mme. Denis, the 
widely spaced violet 
veins and dots remind 
one of a daintily figured 
dimity while in Mme. 
de Savigne we find 
bright red-violet mark- 
ings and flush after the 
fashion of the deeper 
Parisiana, (Vilmorin). 
(Illustrated on this 
page.) 
Bellecoleur is old gold 
with dull lavender on 
the blade, an indeter- 
minate tonation of no 
appeal. None of these 
are other than ordinary 
