Other than true red, what one color would you want to look for in a bearded iris?

Me, true turquoise and true green

D

A green cream would be interesting,maybe orange beards
Maybe Green-gold edges on the falls with pale green vaines.Standards Watermelon but pale or pale melon.

Turquoise, true hot pink, green... and of course contrasting beards in exotic colors!

red amoena--ha ha I do like turquise as well.

I'm probably old fashioned but I would still like a richer pink like found in roses or begonias. I prefer pinks from the blue side rather than the peach side.

Red would seem such an oddity for me, I'm not sure I would care for it. But I understand so many breeders are trying for it.

I think I'm with Paul. Pinks like the old roses and peonies, highly scented.

Keith new one is quite pink and not on the peach side, ruffled, he said fragrant and pink beards

D

I have several that are showing more and more green in the yellow tone and you would think if you have green and yellow you should have more of the turquoise.

D

I would like a true black amoena, with the whitest standards and large reddest beards.

K

I agree Katherine....an improved 'Starring'

& 'improved' as to growth here.

Lucy I have many customers in your area that do grow tons of TB iris, do you add compost to your soil? fertilizer? are your gardens on almost solid rock? Always wanted to know because it seems like you have to struggle to grow many iris. I know most of us are not spring chickens but I can throw TB out on the compost pile and some of my friends in area can to and they grow.

D

John makes our own compost, mainly from leaf mold. Have a ready supply of leaves. Irises grow well from bed to bed. The Tbs which do well vary & the really great ones are taken to the bi yearly ISM sale. I rarely use those for hybridizing. Both Markhams & Pat & ED Norton in Maine are best at growing TBs. I tried Starring from Stephie Markham but it didn't like us. We don't try many Ghio plants, but Romantic Evening does well in this area. American Maid was excellent.

I prefer a deep 'flamingo' type pink to a pale version. Ghio's 'Hopeless Romantic' is quite pale but did well in the convention in Madison WI. I will keep in touch with the person who bought it at the ISM auction last Aug.to see how it does.

"Hopeless Romantic' bloomed for me for the first time last spring. It is a lovely iris.....great form, one of my favorites. I set a pod on it with 'Decadence' pollen. They happened to be just right for a cross the same day. I'll be glad to see how it does this spring. I think there were 4 increases. I also wish it were pinker. That must not be easy.

Crossed with a deep pink might make a better clor. It was growing nicely in Madison.

I agree with others - true red.

Also a truly blue, blue - not with the purpley shade. I want one that when I look at it, and when I take a photo of it, still looks blue. Some of my blues in the sun, have a purple background, yet in my photos look blue.

I have Starring and it is my absolute favorite TB ~j