Tracking (or tracing?) is so important Arlyn. You are really doing a good job with your 'paper trail'. It's right tat 'sometimes help in determining 'authenticity' but also shows what is going on around the world and between botanical gardens. When an iris is traveling with a wrong ID taken for granted the danger is to find the iris in many places with the wrong ID. If you trust the first 'ownership' the ID is not checked most of the time and wrong irises and imposters create confusion for a long time. Here in France I am positive about two Schreiner's being imposters 'Giant Rose' and 'Antique Ivory'. I have to mention that further to a very close research the irises have been imported by a very reliable iris grower, you can imagine that if tis can happen that means that the sender did a mistake in the shipping. Weird.
A "rose label" type marker when bloom time comes' is a good idea too. I far prefer data sheets as I have no luck with the labels. Names get deleted, the tags are remvoed (cats playing around with irises). To prevent them for this now I put the wire around the rhizome before planting it. This seems to work. Before I was trying to plant the wrie part in the ground and to attach it to the rhizome. Bad idea!!!
I have also a master list and all the information you listed but it is not updated so this year I decided not to order any more irises and to focus on the search of French oldies only.
Thank you for your report and for the pics.
C.
