ennials bloom at the same time as the Iris so it is possible to 
build entrancing pictures at Iris time. Lupines are perfect with 
Iris. They come in a variety of colors. Blue ones are good with 
pale yellow Iris. Pink Lupines with white or blue Iris, and so on. 
The orange and yellow Geums are gay with bright yellow Iris 
Ola Kala, but if you love the dainty pastel colors, try blue Iris 
Great Lakes with a billowy mass of pink Pyrethrum. Maybe a 
carpet of Veronica True Blue could be added or the combina- 
tion would be fine with Iris Pink Cameo. Oriental Poppies are 
good with late Iris. Now we have luscious Pinks to go with Iris 
Spanish Peaks (white) or Blue Rhythm or Exclusive (blues). The 
scarlet Poppies are perfect with creamy yellow Iris such as Golden 
Treasure, or blues, like Janice. 
The Salmon Iris in the lower left corner makes pleasant pic- 
tures with yellow Alyssum saxatile growing around the base. 
They are good also with creamy Lupines, as well as the blue 
shades. The photographs show how practical it is to fill in the 
bare space between evergreens with Iris. One should never plant 
evergreens so close together that they do not have room for fu- 
ture expansion. Iris make good ground covers and give a bit 
of color while one waits for the evergreens to grow to large size. 
The illustration of Dreamcastle, next shown, gives one an idea 
how splendid Iris look against a green background. Very often 
a row of [ris can be used at the base of a hedge. In this illus- 
tration, boxwood forms the background, but in more severe 
climates they would look beautiful against Arbor-vitae hedges, 
or the very hardy and useful buckthorn. The border could be 
widened to include a few perennials that bloom along with Iris. 
AMANDINE 
Such an enclosure in the back yard would make a charming out- 
door living room. 
The third picture illustrates again how perfect Iris can be 
with evergreens. Here a creamy yellow Iris, Amandine, is used 
at the base of a Koster’s Blue Spruce. So often a group of ever- 
greens can be livened up with a bit of color. Again, allow space 
for the evergreen to develop, shifting the Iris at each dividing 
time a bit farther away from the spruce. Bits of foliage at the 
base of the photograph show that the spruce is growing in a 
flower border. This suggests that one can grow a garden en- 
closure in the midst of a flower garden by merely being careful 
not to crowd the plants too thickly. 
The last illustration shows how perfectly color can be dis- 
played against a white house as a background. Here we have a 
very dark Iris, such as Lothario. Dark colors are especially good 
against white, whereas they may be lost against a background 
of green, there being not enough contrast between the depth of 
color of the flower and the foliage. Against a white house these 
dark colors stand out strongly silhouetted so they appear at their 
very best. Pale colors are good too against a white background. 
For some reason, the purity of delicate colors is enhanced against 
white. Since white houses are so very popular in America, we 
should use them more and more as backgrounds for flowers. 
A garden around the base of a white house has such a homelike 
atmosphere compared to the unattractive bare walls which are so 
commonly found in most cities. What is more, Iris seem to revel 
in the heat reflected by a white wall and are one of the best 
perennials for such a position. 
Page 5 
LOTHARIO 
Ei 
RIAL D RSET 
ISS OFERTAS PBST RIS REL SE BERR ees GRRE Re 
