Today ‘Strictly Ballroom’ is the lone reminder of my former obsession with bearded irises.
2004-05-06. Bearded iris ‘Silverado’ on a cloudy day.
May 6th, 2008
Iris ‘Silverado’
Two small stems of the bearded iris ‘Silverado’ bloomed for May Day. I want to say that ‘Silverado’ has never been very vigorous in my garden but photographic evidence contradicts me. Apparently I had quite a good stand of it in 2003 before I divided it and moved it. The three large rhizomes I’d bought from Schreiner’s Iris in 1999 had multiplied to 12 crowded small ones.
Schreiner’s bred ‘Silverado’ and introduced it to the iris world in 1987 where it took award after award, winning the highest honor, the Dykes Medal, in 1994. The color is the palest silvery blue with the slightest hint of lavender. The color glimmers in the mist or moonlight but washes out in glaring sunlight. The blooms are full and ruffled without the over-the-top frilliness of some modern irises. The standards and the falls are proportionately balanced.
2008-04-17. Bearded iris ‘Champagne Elegance’.
April 18th, 2008
Iris ‘Champagne Elegance’
Dateline: 2008-04-18
Did I move ‘Champagne Elegance’ as I chided myself to do in 2004? Why is my record-keeping so inconsistent? No, I chopped out the oregano instead. I had already moved her to the east square of the front lawn, a sunny spot where my plan was to plant roses and irises so that I could keep all the demanding plants together. The nearby Texas mountain laurel and oleander grew so quickly that this planned sunny spot was completely in the shade last year. So go my plans. As do my dreams of hundreds of irises multiplying exponentially.
Still ‘Champagne Elegance’ struggles on. Last year, Austin got twice as much rainfall in the summer as normal and I lost many bearded irises to rot. Only one rhizome of ‘Champagne Elegance’ survived. It produced three babies, each of which sent up a stalk and began flowering yesterday. Six small flowers in all. This is not a very impressive showing in the realm of tall beard iris fanciers but it pleases me.
Aren’t there certain flowers in your garden that make you run out when you spot them and whoop for joy? “Look! There’s ‘Champagne Elegance’ again’,” I insist, showing anyone who will stop and look.
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2003-04-27. Austin, Texas. (zone 8)
April 21st, 2007
Iris ‘Raspberry Wine’
In 2007, ‘Raspberry Wine’ has been the only named bearded iris that I still own that bloomed. Over the years since I first fell in love with bearded iris, my yard has gotten shadier and shadier. Bearded iris are definitely sun-loving plants.
I’d give up on fancy bearded irises except every time one opens, I fall in love all over again. ‘Raspberry Wine’ is no exception. I really like the color and the proportions of this flower. It just needs more sunlight than I can offer it here. Given the poor conditions for irises in my garden the last couple of years, I’m delighted that it flowered at all.
I received ‘Raspberry Wine’ as a bonus iris with my order from Schreiner’s.
Schreiner 2001 M 37″ Claret self. “This vigorous wonder has inherited superb growth habits from its parent Madeira. Seedling BB 326-1”
Parentage:
Madeira X Y682-2: (T453-B, Thriller sib x T449-A: (R183-A, sib to Stardus Memories pod parent, x R208-A: ((Sailor’s Dance x unknown) x Yaquina Blue pollen parent)))
In 2005 ‘Raspberry Wine” won an Honorable Mention award from the American Iris Society. Oddly enough, I couldn’t find ‘Raspberry Wine’ in Schreiner’s Iris Gardens online catalog just now, even though they developed this iris. It is available from Rainbow Iris Farm in Iowa.
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Bearded iris ‘Sneezy’
April 16th, 2002
Iris ‘Sneezy’
Sadly, ‘Sneezy’ bloomed in my garden only once and then disappeared. Experiences like this persuade me that I’d be better off just forgetting the garden and buying cut flowers instead.
Description from Schreiner’s Iris Lovers Catalog 1999:
“Altruist’s cool azure shading lightens to a luminescent chalk white along the midrib and around the berd. The ruffled and fluted petals emit a soft effervescence, yet the substance is surprisingly heavy. Two branches and a spur with 8-9 buds. Tall bearded. EM Light blue fall. Light blue standard. Beard white. 1987. HM 1989,AM 1991.
April 14th, 2002
Iris ‘Altruist’
Dateline: 2002
The bearded irises have really begun blooming this week, beginning with ‘Altruist’ on April 8th, then ‘Champagne Elegance’ on April 9th, and ‘Incantation’ today.
Whenever an iris opens, I fall in love with it, forsaking all others.
Zanthan Gardens History
Monday March 19, 2000
Among my Schreiner’s order this year, one ‘Altruist’ ($7.50).
2001-04-11. Second to bloom in this row. It is not very blue, but more lavender. It is more flouncy and more open than “Mystic’s Muse’, matching the description from Schreiner’s quoted above. I brought them both to work today and their colors complement.
2002
2002-04-08.
First flower of 2002 on ‘Altruist’ and first flower this year of all the bought irises.
2002-04-22.
Altruist has produced some spectacular stalks, each with many flowers. As for the note above, it only seemed less heavy because it was not fully open.
2002-06-02
One of the Altruist rhizomes had rot. Dug up five rhizomes and soaked them in a mild bleach solution, then replanted them in the front square. The one that had rot was one that already bloomed, so it should probably be thrown out. It was small and didn’t have any babies. One other was very small and three were good sized and will probably bloom next year.
Thursday April 10, 2003
First flower of 2003.
Monday April 5, 2004
First Flower. Iris ‘Atruist’ is also the first flower of all the bought irises.
Tuesday August 28, 2018
Schreiner’s no longer carries this iris.
