Iris reticulata and forms 2008

[arisaema]

What a stunning plant!

[art600]

Paul
I think your plant is very much better than the comparison on site supplied by David.

Have you ever set seed on your Irises?  I would like to be first in the queue if this one sets seed.

[Paul T]

Thanks for your comments everyone.  Glad the pics were enjoyable.  I'll take a couple more pics tomorrow if I am home when they are in better light.

Arthur,

I've never had seed set on any of my retics.  I've tried hand pollinating a few times before, but obviously unsuccessfully.  I might try pollinating the two flowers I have, plus I'm hoping to save some pollen if I can collect any, so that I can cross with some other retics if they flower this year.  This one is WAY ahead of anything else I have.  I don't know whether hitrio pollen is compatible with retics or the retic hybrids?  I know that histrioides is involved in the crosses, but not whether histrio is?

The other possibility is that when this multiplies I can perhaps send you a bulb?  Still haven't many as yet, but I don't know what difference the new crocus garden will make to the health of these yet.  I'm expecting a lot more flowers on the retics next year, as many will recover this season from neglect (actually, more of a heat problem than actual neglect) and hopefully produce bigger flowering bulbs.  I'm hoping I might still be a bit surprised this year and get more flowers than I expected.  Fingers crossed.

[Paul T]

Howdy All,

Some pics I took today in a bit better sun.  As you can see the flowers have expanded somewhat, looking much better now.  Still look absolutely massive compared to so many of the retics.  Each flower is just over 10cm (4 inches) wide, and the tallest point of the flower stands just over 17.5cm (7 inches) off the ground.  I am very impressed!!

As to flower colour, the shot from above and the detail pic are the closest to actual colour, while the other shot with the dark background is a little more purpley than in reality.

Enjoy.

[Paul T]

And here's Iris histrio again, this time from a different source.  This flower is a bit smaller, and slightly darker with heavier markings I think.  May be an anomoly this season, but it came from Lebanon rather than Syria apparently, so they're countries apart!    I have put pollen from the Syrian one onto this oen, so will see what happens there seed-wise.  I think that the self pollination of the Syrian one may have worked, as the base of the flower I pollinated is more swollen than the other one when I squeeze it gently.  Too early to tell for sure though.  That is why I only pollinated one of them, so that I'd have some idea of whether there was a difference or not.  Fingers crossed.

[Magnar]

Paul, that is a wonderful plant. Hope the pollination has gone well

[Paul T]

Thanks Magnar.

I'm also intending to do some crossed with reticulatas when they eventually flower.  Anyone know whether histrio will cross with them?  I know that the histrioides are in some of the named crosses we have today, but does reticulatas (or the histrioides hybrids) accept histrio pollen and set seed successfully?  I can only imagine what something like 'George' crossed with histrio would result in, but I'm willing to give it a go. 

[art600]

Paul

Your Iris keep getting better.  This latest one is a stunner.  Good luck with pollination/hybridisation.

[Luc Gilgemyn]

Wonderful histrio Paul - magnificent blue shade !! 

[hadacekf]

Paul,
Glad to see your wonderful Iris! Thanks

[Lesley Cox]

Paul. I don't want to upstage you at all, but felt I should post these two pics which came to me yesterday from Marcus Harvey. They are originally from Otto's stock which I think (may be wrong here) came to him from Paul Furse. They are the same as yours, the Syrian Iris histrio. Alas I don't have this myself.





I've brought one of my two pots of I. danfordiae inside in hope that the buds will warm enough to open. still raining here.

[Lesley Cox]

I must have been dead at the beginning of the year when this thread started as I've not seen ANY of it before today when I went looking for a possible reticulata thread to post the above pics. What an amazing collection and I hope they're all shown again in the northern winter/spring. So many comments I wanted to make about ID and other things.

As a start, Iris bakeriana always has 8 sides to the leaves (almost round, but still countable), in cross section. I. reticulata always has 4 sides. The hybrids between the two,('Gordon,'  'Springtime,'  'Clairette' and any others) have between 4 and 8, usually 5, 6 or 7. That is the infallible way to distinguish bakeriana from its hybrids.

[Paul T]

Lesley,

Upstage away!!   Worthwhile for such wonderful pics.  Marcus sent them to me as well the other day and I thoroughly enjoyed them.  Forgot to ask whether he wanted them uploaded on here or not.

Would love to see a pic of your danfordiae.  Hopefully mine with the insulation in the garden will actually mature enough to flower one of these years.  I recall the one time I have had a flower, the first year I bought them, which was at least 15 years ago.  Nary a flower since.

[Lesley Cox]

A correction first, Otto's Iris histrio came to him from a Frenchman, a Dr Boussard, not Paul Furse and it was collected in Lebanon.

Iris danfordiae spent yesterday in my kitchen and 5 flowers opened by evening. Even in those few hours, the stems have etoliated a little as can be seen from the pale growth next to the compost. But they wouldn't have opened at all outside, still raining and foggy, very cold and dank, drear and dreicht! There are 8 buds/flowers on this potful and another 7 on a second pot. Not bad for one year but remembering that these are the commercial clone, brought into NZ from Holland from a northern summer harvest (a year ago), then chilled until selling time here (February), thus getting over the change of seasons. If they survive at all I'll be very surprised and already they seem to be splitting, with individual leaves quite well apart from each other. They are planted half way down a plastic long tom pot and the compost is about 40% grit, last year's having rotted before they came up.

[Paul T]

Lovely, Lesley.  I don't remember the green stripes in the middle on my one years ago, but it was long enough that I've probably just forgotten it.  Thanks for the pics.