A majestic flag: Iris stolonifera

Iris stolonifera

I was given my first Iris stolonifera by Tom Johnson of Denver in 1980. This was the very first aril iris I ever tried to grow--and grow it did--with great vigor at Denver Botanic Gardens. I have pictures of it somewhere I should scan and add to this little essay: as it turns out the form I grew then (and probably still have puttering around my garden) was the homeliest aril of them all. I wasn't impressed. Fast forward to May 15, 2023 when I (along with other participants in a fantastic Plant Collections Collaborative expedition) were driven over a very bumpy jeep road to just over 2000 m. in the Bayson Mountains of southernmost Uzbekistan. Iris stolonifera was one of the lead players of a day bristling with extraordinary plat finds.

I will quietly sidestep my usual role as Greek Chorus chanting between pictures and let you enjoy what we discovered: Iris stolonifera is a very sexy plant (and variable to boot) indeed!

A characteristic pose for Johan Nilsson, horticulturist extraordinaire from Gothenburg's outstanding botanical garden. He was the first to spy this patch: he's very photogenic--I have a host of images of him over the years rapt with flowers. Traveling with Johan is a great privilege--I would place him very near the top of the greatest gardeners I've ever known. And I've known a lot!

Now if this doesn't make you want to grow Iris stolonifera, I don't know what would! They were just budding up to bloom for me when I left--you can be sure I'll be pampering my patches at home as never before!