It's a rainy day today and I can't get outside until later, so I thought I'd post pictures of some Dark Tops.

LA SCALA


SECRET RITES - Temperatures can really affect the colors on this beauty!


TEMPESTO


SECRET PARTNER


CANTINA


KAH-NEE-TA - Pictures taken at Cooley's in 2009


BROOME SUNSET


DANDY CANDY


BEWITCHMENT


CHIANTI CLASSIC


HIGHLAND GAMES - Saw this one at Schreiner's


DANCING WITH IRENE


IVORY GHOST


STRUT YOUR STUFF


BEACH DANCE


FLAME AMBER and NOUVEAU RICHE



Does anyone else have pictures of Dark Tops you'd like to share?

Some real beauties, I love strut your stuff, one of my favorite Paul Black iris, I can't get pics that do it justice though. Here's a few that I can add to the mix.

Wintery Sky


Eagle Control and Coastal Mist


Crowned Heads and New Face


Right of Spring and Tanner


Before The Storm and Chicksaw Sue


Tom

Betty I really like Beach Dance and Flame Amber the colors are beautiful in both of them and I really like Chicksaw Sue as well Thanks for posting these.

I have "Flame Amber" and I would call it a dud. It grows well and blooms well; but not much to look at (just my two cents).

Wintry Sky - such a great iris, should win the Dykes Medal, but I kind of doubt it will at this point


Royal Sterling - another ethereal creation from Keith Keppel


Magical - my current favorite of Joe Ghio's many beauties


Classicana - gloriously ruffled and a good grower. Great pedigree coming from Wintry Sky and Louisa's Song


Sunset Storm - really poor pictures of a really nice iris


Brussels - very nice, my only complaint is that I can't get a successful cross from it.


Waterline - to me, it is by far the prettiest of the "reverse blue amoenas with red/tangerine beards"


Nouveau Riche

Beautiful, Tom and Kent! I just got WINTRY SKY last year, and I sure hope it blooms this year. And I really love WATERLINE. I didn't order it, but I included it in my list of suggestions for bonus plants from Keith, so maybe... I'll get it by next year for sure, though! And NEW FACE is really a favorite here...

Kent I think you mentioned that the picture in your header is of one of your seedlings? I wish you would include that among these pics as I think it's as good as many of these. Are you going to register it? I think it's really beautiful. Tom

It is one of my seedlings, Tom, thank you for the compliment. I really like it, but it is difficult to be objective about your own plants. LOL

Last year was its maiden bloom, so it will be awhile yet before I decide to register it or not. Should get a better feel for its qualities when it blooms again in the next month or two (knock on wood). So far, it looks good this spring, growing well, nice amount of increase. It also has purple based foliage which is a bit of a bonus, at least to me.

I kept a couple of its siblings. I really like the form and especially the substance (and, of course, the ruffles!) of this one:



The color of the flower itself is a bit more subdued than the seedling in my avatar, though.

Sometimes our concerns about not being able to be objective makes us over critical. I think it's a beauty, and and merits your stong consideration for registration. This year will be critical to see if it continues being this good, but I'm sure it will be. Good Luck!

Those are great pictures of WIntry Sky it is a really good grower here as well and I will be adding Waterline to the want list I just have to wait a year or two until its a little less expensive.