Some Clump shots.......

Sigh.

...Arlyn

Oh my! Do you know the name of that second one? Gorgeous!

The second picture if Florentine Silk......Dykes Medal Winner....Keith Keppel

Thanks, Paul. Now to find it...

Wonderful clump and garden shots Paul! I gotta get that Bruhaha! Don't know why I haven't ordered it yet.

Magical!

That's the right word, Bonnie!

What is it about a clump shot that makes a beautiful Iris drop-dead gorgeous? You'd think it would be over-kill -- but nooooooooooooooo!!

I don't know but it's great!

Ambrosie

I wish my tablet took better pics.

Wow, beautiful clump shots Paul!

Paul,
Could you give the names from top to bottom? In the first frame there are two different ones as well. Could you give both the names?

Those shots are absolutely wonderful, by the way.

K

Wow, Paul. Your irises and your photos are gorgeous!
I have a question for the forum. Last year I bought about a dozen new iris - I'd had a few that I'd bought long ago, (28-30 years) but many just now
produce healthy leaves and no flowers . Of the new dozen, about 8 of them flowered this season. Is this normal?
And, a second question. I've way overspent my iris budget this year - buying many singles, but some doubles. I'm going to
plant them according to color, for some semblance of clumps, but do people here buy in threes or more to get more of a clump
look?

Jan I can only speak for myself but if I LOVE an iris and have been panting for it for at least a year I will buy three. However that is unusual for me. Most of the time, and if an iris is advertised as a great increaser, I only buy one. This gives me a good start and allows me to buy more irises..... as well as keep my lights on, eat and feed the animals. I have friends that never buy less than five of one kind. They have acres of land and gardeners. .....and then they have to divide much sooner than I do.

Two thirds of my new irises bloomed this year. I met the vendor after bloom time this spring and she said all anyone can really know they are going to get is a fifty percent bloom on first year plantings. I have found that who I get them from, how long they have to travel, how soon I get them in the ground and what care I follow up with makes a big difference in whether or not they bloom the first year. Some cultivars will not bloom the first year if you spoon fed and sang them to sleep every night. another iris adventure.

janwax said:Of the new dozen, about 8 of them flowered this season. Is this normal?

I generally expect two out of three newly planted iris to bloom in their first spring, maybe three out of four in a really good year, so getting 8 out of a dozen seems about right. (this year, less than 20% of the new ones bloomed thanks to the winter we had). In California, you might reasonably have somewhat higher expectations, but I still wouldn't count on 100% bloom the first year.

Where you buy them from can make a difference, too. If you buy directly from growers, you'll generally get bigger, more mature rhizomes that are more likely to bloom that first spring.

Katherine....which picture do you want me to ID? All of them?

Paul,
Frame one. The foreground one with subtle bordering and the pink one that is in the middle of the frame.
Thank you, Paul!

K

Katherine....the pink is Strawberry Shake from Keppel The bordered in front one is Poster Girl, a Blyth iris that Keith sent as a bonus......