On 10 Mar 04 at 18:26, Jane McGary wrote: > Rodger Whitlock wrote, > I. lazica is a good doer: I have enormous clumps that were planted > >out 15 years ago and have done well even in conditions of not-very- > >good winter drainage. Unfortunately, it is an unkempt plant not > >suitable for the more carefully groomed gardens. Moreover, the > >rather washy flowers appear at a time when much else is flowering; I > >cannot place it in the front rank of iris species. > > I must have a different form, or it is responding differently to the > colder weather here than in the Victoria area. It is a pretty tidy > evergreen with little dieback, forming a compact clump, and the > flowers on mine, which I bought many years ago from Avon Bulbs in > England, are a fairly bright violet. They are, however, well down in > the foliage, and show up well only when a lot of them are open and > not devoured by slugs. I am amused to read that you got yours from the same place I got mine! But the flowers on mine would be better described as "washy mauve", and the clumps are anything but compact. They remind me of teenagers with long semi-ungroomed hair -- a little bratty, but beloved by those close to them. The unkemptness is a byproduct of the evergreenness; perhaps they would look better if given a haircut once a year. Not much dieback, but enough to make it out of place in a garden more groomed than mine. Mine agree with yours in having the flowers down in the foliage. I do (or did) have a seedling I. lazica with a good dark purple flower. I'll have to toddle out today and see if it's still among the living. -- Rodger Whitlock Victoria, British Columbia, Canada Maritime Zone 8, a cool Mediterranean climate on beautiful Vancouver Island