Sunday, April 8, 2012

Dutch Iris

Spring is flying by.  My garden has arrived at a kind of awkward stage where there doesn't seem to be a lot blooming.  Driving around I see lots of azaleas and dogwoods, but I don't have very many azaleas since I know deer like them and I get a lot of deer browsing.  When I take a careful look, I realize that I do have several things in bloom.  Maybe if I group them better it will look more like I have a real garden, but it might just be that for this brief window in spring, my garden will never look as flowery as the rest of the world.  Oh well, in a few days their azaleas will be gone and I'll still have ... what?  Well, a little of this and that, anyway.  I'm looking forward to the swath of larkspur that is just about to explode.  I have chamomile that charms me every spring around the same time, too, and the first stem is already blooming (along with cilantro). 

For now, what I'm most enjoying are the Dutch Iris.  These bulbs do well for me and multiply each year.  I originally bought a mix and ended up hating some of the colors so much I dug some up and threw them in the compost.  That might be the first plant I ever bought that I intentionally killed.  On the other hand, I adore these ones, that combine my favorite garden colors, blue and yellow.  These are really blue, not purple or lilac or indigo.  Yum.

This particular individual flower is a bit weird.  Do you see it?  On most of the flowers, there are three yellow falls and three blue standards.  This one has two yellow falls, two blue standards, and a mutant blue-and-yellow freak petal.  Here's a close-up of the mutant petal.  It's kind of beautiful in its own right... which is not going to prevent me from pulling it up and putting it in the compost of the rest of the flower buds on the stalk open like this too.  I'm pretty curious to know if this kind of "sport" is common.  I haven't noticed it before.
There were also a lot of white iris in the mix.   Initially I wasn't crazy about them, but I gave them another chance and now that they have multiplied into a decent size clump I like them a lot more.  They blend very nicely with the deep purple ones. 


The only problem with the Dutch iris is that, unlike most (or all?) other iris varieties, the foliage is nothing to write home about.  It doesn't even necessarily wait until the flowers are done blooming before it starts looking hideous.  I need to come up with something to plant with it that will be green and full at this time, leaving just enough head room for the iris to stick out the top.  The larkspur actually is about the right height in some spots, but is a bit too short near the iris.  I have marjoram that might be tall enough right now to hide some unsightly foliage... something to think about.  Any other ideas?

6 comments:

  1. I planted a bunch of Dutch iris mixed in with daffodils. They're still coming up since they were planted late. I WISH I had a mutant blue/yellow iris!!! That is the coolest flower! Don't kill it for being different! That's what makes the world interesting. :o)

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    1. Ha ha, maybe you're right. Besides the mutant petal, it's also kind of spindly looking compared to the others of that color, but I guess there's no harm in it. Just a few hours ago I was looking at your post where you show the new bulb bed. You might yet get a few mutants of your own! I agree it sure was nice to be able to be out in the garden in January.

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  2. I love dutch irises, but they don't multiply in my garden. I think the only ones that bloom are the ones I plant the fall before. Still, I plant more every fall. But like you, I've noticed that they need to be "in" something as their foliage is so spindly. That blue and yellow one is so pretty!

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    1. Hi Holley,
      I have trouble with bearded iris, so the Dutch iris are my consolation in a way. I really like the blue and yellow ones too, myself. I'd probably be just as happy if all mine were that cultivar but I can only seem to find them in the mix. The last few years I've also had some native iris that are really beautiful but bloom later.

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  3. Lovely Dutch Iris pics--such a delicate, lovely flower. Mickie :)

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    1. Hi Mickie, I'm glad you liked the pix. Thanks for stopping by. Yes, irises of all types are pretty classy looking, I think, and yet these (miraculously) seem to feel at home in my garden.

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