* 
CCOPERATIVE EXTENSION WORK 
IN 
AGRICULTURE AND HOME ECONOMICS 
STATE OF LOUISIANA 
LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY AND AGRICULTURAL 
AND MECHANICAL COLLEGS AND UNITED SVATES Extension Service 
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULYURE COOPERATING 
University Station 
Baton Rouge, La. 
November 12, 1950 
To: Fersons Interested in Louisiana Native Irises 
The amazing history of the discovery and develnpment of the 
Louisiana native iris as a garden subject during the brief period 
of the past thirty years has been told in an authoritative manner 
by Miss Caroline Dermon. A copy of her story is enclosed for your 
information. With her intriguing style she has carried the reader 
through the successive steps of discovery of new botanical species 
by the scientist; exploration and "finds" of the collectors; new 
creations by amateur hybridizers; and tests and research by our 
public institutions. This document is an historic record which 
most iris lovers wili wish to preserve for future reference. 
For the information of those who do not know Miss Dormon, she is a 
naturalist, an artist, a writer, and a lecturer on the native flora 
of this region. Her article is the more authentic since she her- 
self has played such a prominent role in collecting and populariz- 
ing this native of the Louisiana lowlands. 
U 
any Pests ch 
4 
Claude W. Davis, Asst. State Agent and 
Professor of Agr. Extension Education. 
