Oncos 2009

[Hans A.]

Hello Fred,
again a wonderful picture of a stunning plant!
Maybe you do not have to wait to long to see your next Onco in flower as you never know when season is over - just yesterday I found some more buds here...

[Paul T]

Fred,

What a beautiful picture!!  Lovely!

[Rafa]

This is the perfection Fred, a botanical jewel pictured very clear, with a good composition, light, depth of field, with true colors and contrast backgroud. I love this kind of studio pictures because you can see all the characters very clear, although nothing comparing to take pictures in the wild!! 

[Oron Peri]

Last one for me in the bulb frame, Iris iberica ssp. lycotis Iris acutiloba ssp. lineolata
   one year more to wait for new flowers ....

What a beauty Fred 
And to think you are going to see it again in only 12 months

[arillady]

I heard this morning that when a NZ rose friend stayed with a couple in the South East of South Australia in 2006 that the wife was growing Iris susiana. I hope to talk to the lady who might be growing this iris this evening. Seems that it would be too wet and cold down there but we can live in hope.
I will let you know what eventuates

[Regelian]

Pat, that IS exciting!  Of course, we mussn't count our oncos before they germinate.

[arillady]

Well yes Jamie.
The lady rang this evening and she thinks it was a blue and brown and can not remember dotting and veining but she has offered me one of her three plants that are in her garden.
I am not holding my breath that it will be correct as you would think she would remember the dotting and veining.
It came from someone who had grown it for years up at Balaklava which is north of here. I do know there was a clone up in that direction years ago until an old lady went into  a nursing home.
The lady has about 30 different coloured nerines and likes to collect rarer bulbs as well as grows roses. I will send her a parcel of a few aril hybrids and some Iris lactea seed in return.

[Paul T]

Fingers crossed Pat, that it is the right thing.  So valuable to find stuff like that.  Sounds like a nice Nerine collection as well.  I wonder what other rarer things she grows?

[johanneshoeller]

Some more pics of Josef Mayr's collection.

These are pictures of color variations of Iris acutiloba ssp. lineolata

Josef cultivates all his oncos in 80% unwashed quarz sand with about 20% of friable loam added. During the period the oncos are in growth, he fertilizes 3 times with a high potash fertilizer, like tomato fertilizer. All plants grow in an alpine house or in a cold frame, because our sommers are too wet.

[David Nicholson]

Hans, Herr Mayr is obviously a very skillful gardener.

[Lesley Cox]

Pat, if you're thinking of sending aril rhizomes to NZ, DON'T. They will be destroyed on entry unless your friend has a permit to import, the rhizomes were inspected in full growth prior to export, inspected again and treated for a number od pathogens immediately prior to export and they will have to go into a registered quarantine facility for 12 months. All this could cost the recipient several thousand dollars. Iris lactea is permitted as seed (declare it on the envelope) but seed of hybrids must have the names of the species involved on the package and if any of those are not on the Bio Index, the seed will be destroyed.

Having said that, Iris susiana was certainly growing in NZ up to 3 or 4 years ago, the true species, from imports made in the 1950s and continued without a break, but rather precariously. NZIS has kept an eye on the most recent planting, in the Hakataramea Valley I think, inland South Canterbury, and in the hands of a single grower. The climate there is very hot, dry summer and cold winter. I've not seen a plant of susiana since about 1965 I think. I remember once when the Sth Canty Iris group had a display in shop windows in town, the then grower, a Mrs Dunn whose husband was a jeweller, picked half a dozen stems and displayed them in a deep and wide sterling silver trophy cup. They were magnificent.

Would you email me privately Pat, with the name of this person? I may be able to give you a little more information.

[Hans A.]

Hans - thanks for showing this fine plants - specially first one is delicate - i supose the narrow leaves in the background are of an other plant - they would be extremly narrow for an Onco.
The red one looks like a hybrid between Iris barnumae f. protonyma and Iris acutiloba ssp. lineolata. Colour and general shape of I. barnumae f. protonyma but narrower and slightly veined Falls similar to I.a.ssp. l. - a beautiful plant!

Pat hope you will find a "correct" Iris susiana.

[Lesley Cox]

I had my wires crossed, thought it was the wife of the NZ friend who was growing susiana. Not.

[arillady]

Lesley would you be able to contact the NZ lady and get a closeup and clump photo of her Iris susiana. Gwenda might already have one.
Would be good to post it on here to see what others think.
I will be too late for bloom time when I arrive in November.

[Lesley Cox]

I'll do my best.