John has done the cooking in our house for several years. I just don't have the energy.

My sons cook for me. My daughters take me out to eat. lol

My hub does the cooking -- it's called self-protection!! A cook I am not!

I enjoyed your article in 'Roots' about the family iris, Arlyn. We have no iris of that type except probably 'The Black Douglas' which didn't bloom the last couple years. We did not get it from John's grandmother's garden, but she had it marked in all the immediate post WWII catalogs she had, so we are sure that she planted it.

Thank You, Lucy ! Those "family plants" are what got me "hooked on iris"! It's almost impossible for me to see one of them, and not think of my mother, an aunt, a grandmother....whoever grew it "first"....and sometimes I smile (or even laugh ), and sometimes there's a tear in my eye.....but it's all good !!

I don't get Roots but I would love to read the article. Arlyn, is it posted online somewhere? I know I have read a bit about your iris roots but I would love to read it again.

Just got my issue of Roots yesterday. Looking forward to reading your article, Arlyn.
BTW, the new HiIPS website is beautiful, with great new search options.

It IS nice ! The "search and compare" feature is great.....I do wish the photos were larger, though.....old eyes, I guess ! I noticed, while reading through the new issue.....that several of the articles deal, more or less, with "family connections" in the iris garden......and that seems to be a common thread, in all the "stories" I've heard about how folks got "hooked" on iris (and gardening, in general)......"My mother grew it."...."my Grandma gave me a start"...." My father hybridized and introduced several"....whatever! Anyway, "family" and "iris" seem to go together quite well !

Bonnie,
Roots is on line for members. An e-membership gets you Roots on line for $10/yr, and a full membership with the printed magazine is $13 per year or $11/yr for 3yr membership. To me it is worth the extra buck.

This looks like the one I have called Vingolf. I have both Loreley and Vingolf, And Loreley has more speckly blooms, and Vingolf is wonderfully fragrant. Maybe I have them mixed up, but both lovely!

tveguy3 said:I would have to say that my favorite historic iris is Loreley, not only because of it's unique patterns on the falls, but mostly because of the wonderful fragrance it has. Also a fast grower.
Loreley Goos & Koenemann 1909

What a lovely story! Thought I would "bump" it back into circulation.

grannysgarden said:There is no other blossom like the iris. so many rich colors and so many combinations like the rainbow it was named after. Legend has it that the three standards stand for strength, honor and wisdom and that the falls represent the beginning, middle and end. The iris was so valued by rulers that an Asian head of state declared that none could be grown outside of his palace and grounds. The law stated that they could not be grown in gardens, boxes, stalls, barns, pastures, roads, ditches, forests or paths...... so the people grew them on their roofs, hence the Japanese roof iris. Iris blooms seem to run like a thread through many of our lives as we grow them when we are young and take them with us like family portraits or heirloom china. If we do leave them behind in our busy lives once we slow down, watch the geese fly in over the lake, the mist rise from the water and see the sunrise we think 'I want a garden, now, where can I find my old irises'. We are not just iris nuts, we are people that enjoy the finest things in life and we recognize this trait in others. Welcome to this group of people who appreciate, nay love, the iris flower.

Wow! Love Lady Mohr! I don't know if AB's will grow in NE IA. Who grows it and where?

crowrita1 said:My favorite for the day is:

• Tall Bearded Iris (Iris 'Caprice')
• Uploaded by crowrita1

Caprice
And the runner up is

• Arilbred Iris (Iris 'Lady Mohr')
• Uploaded by crowrita1

Lady Mohr
....................Arlyn

My database says I have 'Lady Mohr', but she seems to be hiding from me... I'll have to send out a search party in the morning..
I think the hardiness depends on the percentage of Aril vs bearded
. More being less cold and wet tolerant. I've got a neighbor who has quite a few. We have relatively mild winters, and generally no summer rain. He grows his in straight sand so that they get good drainage. There are some folks on here that grow them that have more knowledge and can say more than I have..

The first two are under a walnut tree already on our farm when property was purchased. The last two are near property line amidst overgrown lilac bushes. I have no idea what they are, but are really pretty.

They are very pretty. I don't know enough about the historics to say more than that!

caitlinsgarden said:What a lovely story! Thought I would "bump" it back into circulation.

So lovely and so true!

Tabasco bloomed for the first time this year, and it is a real stunner! I am already planning which irises to grow with it. Right now Ancient Echoes is in the same bed, as is Caliente, and I plan to move Cajun Cooking, Cajun Spices, Tropical Butterfly, Solar Flame and Edgefield Glow. That should be a real hot spot when they bloom!

crowrita1 said:Missed yesterday, so I'll catch up first...yesterday's favorite was:

• Tall Bearded Iris (Iris 'Dominion')
• Uploaded by crowrita1

Dominion
and the runner up was:

• Tall Bearded Iris (Iris 'Tabasco')
• Uploaded by crowrita1

Tabasco
Now, for today, favorite is:

• Tall Bearded Iris (Iris 'Alcazar')
• Uploaded by crowrita1

Alcazar
runner up is;

• Tall Bearded Iris (Iris 'Monsignor')
• Uploaded by crowrita1

Monsignor
.................................Arlyn

I have seen a lot of this in my garden, and the soil has a kind of "mushroomy" smell to it. I have been wondering if the bad fungi are what eats into the back of my new rhizomes and rots the leaves...I don't want to use chemicals if I can avoid them. But it would be nice to know which are the good guys and the bad guys, at least in iris circles.

Linneaj said:I think that is the white thready fungi that grows in our wood chips.

Yes, This is me too! Except in the winter I paint!

cbelt1 said:Somehow my house gets ignored in the spring and summer when I am outside weeding, deadheading, admiring and wishing. Then it is ignored in the winter when I am making jewelry, scrapbook ing or sewing. Heck I guess I ignored it all year, except if I am gone traveling. Then I do not think about it at all.

You really need to join HIPs and get "Roots" if you like historics! It is very inexpensive, like $10 a year.

grannysgarden said:I don't get Roots but I would love to read the article. Arlyn, is it posted online somewhere? I know I have read a bit about your iris roots but I would love to read it again.