- King County Iris Society
- Louisiana Irises: bright colors for boggy areas.
- Siberian Irises: gracefull foliage and a wide range of colors.
- Pacific Coast Irises: an amazing array of colors and patterns.
- Bearded Irises: colors and sytles to fit the needs of any gardener!
- Japanese Irises: magnificently majestic; eye-catching in the garden.
- Spuria Irises: tall and stately, ideal for landscape backgrounds.
- Species Irises: landscape marvels; genetic parents of modern hybrids.
Member Essay
About Species Iris
Lorena Reid has presented slides involving a number of species iris. With the thought in mind that not all members may be familiar with them, the following is a capsule description of the species and crosses she mentioned.
| Species | Native Location(s) | Bloom Height | Growing Characteristics | Flower Color |
| I. bulleyana | SW China | 14-18" | Likes acid soil and acid water; moist soil and plenty of humus are needed | Standards Blue to Violet; Falls mottled and striped blue-violet over white |
| I. chrysographes | China & Burma | 12-30" | Two flowers per stem | Red-violet to Black with or without signal of gold lines |
| I. clarkei | Himalayan countries | 24" | Solid stems, often with multiple branches; erect foliage | Blue-violet with obvious signal-like a butterfly |
| I. delavayi | SW China | 24-47" | Wide foliage; late bloomer | Light to dark Blue-violet. White signal |
| I. dykesii | Found in Dykes' garden after his death | 36" | Deep Violet. White signal. Yellow veins | |
| I. forestii | China into N. Burma | 14-30" (Dwarf 6") | Foliage shiny on top; bluish-green underneath | Yellow. Signal of dark lines and spots. Fragrant. |
| I. laevigata | Eastern Asia & Japan | 30-36" | Hybridized with I. versicolor. Likes wet conditions, acid soil and direct sunlight. | Blue, Purple, White |
| I. pseudocorus | Europe across to the Middle East , down to North Africa | 30-63" | Largest plant; Flourishes in wet conditions | Yellow, Cream, White |
| I. setosa | Eastern Asia Japan; Alaska; Eastern Canada (depends on subspecies) | 6-40" | Full sun and moist, rich soil; Hybridized with other species and Siberian iris | Blue, Purple, White |
| I. versicolor | Eastern US | 8-31" | Cross between I. virginica & I. setosa. 108 chromosomes. In the wild grow in wet conditions but adapts to dry locations. Hybridized with I. virginica and Japanese iris | Blue, Violet, Pink, White |
| I. wilsonii | China | 24-30" | Glaucous foliage i.e. bluish-green appearance | Yellow with brown-veined signal; Fragrant |
Contributed by Dwayne Booth for the KCIS Newsletter, November, 1999
