Iris x albicans, was Variable Texas weather
Jane McGary (Sun, 26 Jan 2014 11:38:06 PST)
Cynthia wrote:
Thought to be within the 100 mile or so distance from thr Texas
coast that discourages bearded iris cultuvars from thriving, altho
Iris x albicans, thought to have come here through the Spanish, who
probably originally received it from North Africa. It's reported to
traditionally have been planted in cemeteries, giving rise to one of
its common names, the Cemetary iris (or, White Flag). Sterile, but
can be found almost everywhere in Central Texas, sometimes in
pastures where there is no longer any hint of a house.
In Spain I photographed a large colony of Iris x albicans in what is
now a vacant space near ruins in Ronda, apparently a medieval Muslim
cemetery, where it had grown on and on for centuries. I've also seen
it in ancient olive groves in the eastern Mediterranean. About 30
years ago I bought this plant and found it far too robust for my
protected bulb collection, then in frames, so I moved it to the open
garden, where it flourished despite winter lows regularly around 15
F. Even though it isn't a particularly attractive plant, I brought it
along to the new garden three years ago for its historical interest.
As Cynthia noted, it does not set seed.
Bearded irises in general can survive this way. Some years ago Brian
Mathew, author of the particularly useful book "The Iris" (among many
of his useful titles!), visited Portland to speak to our NARGS
chapter, and we all went out to the Catherine Creek botanical
preserve in Washington. At the site of a long-vanished homestead Dr.
Mathew spotted a dwarf bearded iris that hadn't been noticed in any
of the plant inventories for the preserve.
As I drive around Portland in late spring I often see huge clumps of
bearded irises that obviously haven't been cared for over the years
but have flourished anyway. I'm tempted to ask for rhizomes of these
enthusiastic survivors, though I no longer really have room for them.
When I went through a bearded iris phase (as many of us probably
have) years ago, I found that many of the newer cultivars aren't good
garden plants, being intolerant of the competition that comes with a
mixed border.
Jane McGary
Portland, Oregon, USA