Eugene Zielenski, in commenting on the culture of English irises, asked " Is Pennsylvania a mid-Atlantic state? " In response, I would say depending on the context, maybe. It seems that English irises have been grown successfully in New York State and northward (I'm basing that partially on the account in Molly Price's The Iris Book). So to go back to Eugene's question, I would say that western Pennsylvania is not for purposes of this discussion a middle Atlantic state. I had in mind the piedmont and coastal plain areas, the areas of the major, old cities in this area. For horticultural purposes, the conditions in the physiographic provinces west of the piedmont are significantly different. The zones of similar conditions in this part of the country run roughly southwest to northeast. As you move westward, especially as you cross physiographic provinces, conditions change rapidly. So my question for Eugene is "Where in Pennsylvania were you growing those English irises?" And I'll bet it was not on the coastal plain or piedmont. If it was, please tell us more. There is a sort of gray eminence in this discussion of the culture of bulbous irises, a gray eminence to which I have not called attention. But I have mentioned it in other posts in the past. What I'm referring to are the bulletins written by David Griffiths and published back during the 1920s and 1930s by the USDA. These discuss bulb culture in hugely interesting detail. One such bulletin is devoted to the culture of bulbous irises of the Spanish, Dutch and English groups. Griffiths reported levels of success compatible with commercial production for Spanish and Dutch irises in diverse parts of the country (North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Illinois, Michigan, New York, California, the Pacific Northwest). He reported widespread failure with English irises outside of the Pacific Northwest (the Puget Sound area is evidently ideal for them) and some colder northeastern states (New York and Massachusetts). Of particular interest to me is that one of the sites for his work was a place called the Arlington Experiment Farm in Rosslyn, Virginia. Rosslyn is now a heap of high-rise buildings clustered at the edge of the Potomac River opposite Georgetown, Washington, D.C. I pay particular attention to any comments Griffiths made about successes and failures at Rosslyn - these can fairly be expected to predict success or failure for me because Rosslyn is only about twelve miles from here as the crow flies. English irises were a failure for Griffiths in Washington, D.C. So, Eugene, where in Pennsylvania were you growing those irises? Jim McKenney Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, USDA zone 7, where I'm awaiting the delivery of a peck of freshly picked peaches; when the peaches get here, you won't be hearing from me for awhile. I'll be preparing and eating peach pie and peach ice cream for the next few days.