Oncos 2009

[Hendrik Van Bogaert]

Thank you Lesley for your wise words!
Herewith a little present from Turkey.
Hendrik

[Hans A.]

Thanks a lot for the picture of the oncos and the landscape they belong to!
Lesley I agree completly with you, I could not word it better (even not in german )

Wow Hendrik - another great shot! Thanks again.

[BULBISSIME]

Fantastic again Hendrick 
please have a look on my new post in this iris section 

[Hendrik Van Bogaert]

Lesley, Hans, Fred,
Yes the trees are pines, look at the needles around the plant (I guess Iris nigricans), but the soil is chalky!
Yellow blotches and strikes = virus infection. The disease is transported by aphids. There is no cure. When we swap virus infected plants, we spread the disease to other (healthy) collections.
Hans, herewith some other pictures with a little more landscape; sorry for my presence, but I was too exhausted to disappear after a long walk upon the hill ...
Hendrik

[Lesley Cox]

Hendrik, thank you for this beautiful gift. If it were in my neighbour's garden I would probably kill for it but since it's in Turkey, I'm happy just to see the picture.

[BULBISSIME]

Hendrick, the flower looks so small

thank's for sharing !

[Hendrik Van Bogaert]

Hendrick, the flower looks so small

thank's for sharing !

I don't remember me this plant; probably it's the composition of the picture (myself too big).
The onco's on this site were all very large as you can see on next photo (huge flower, practically at ground level).
We drive 6000 km during this trip (from Istanbul to the border with Iran and back), but I can only say:
I never saw in nature such beautiful plant as Iris elegantissima; it's really, really every effort worth.
Hendrik

[BULBISSIME]

wonderfull picture Hendrick,

I'd love to do it !

[Paul T]

Hendrick,

Excellent pictures!!  That last one of elegantissima (and the one you posted in that topic) are just glorious. This is my "Holy Grail" Iris, the one that got me interested in them when I saw it first in a book many years ago.  I too have bought and killed it, and hope to grow it successfully one of these decades.    For now I can just enjoy the wonderful pics that people post here of it. 

[Luc Gilgemyn]

Superb pictures Hendrik !!!! 
Thanks very much for sharing !

[Ragged Robin]

Superb pictures Hendrik !!!! 
Thanks very much for sharing !

I agree with Luc, superb and really interesting and happy to see the result of your searches 

[Hans A.]

Fantastic pictures Hendrik!
Hope to see many more...

[Miriam]

I don't remember me this plant; probably it's the composition of the picture (myself too big).
The onco's on this site were all very large as you can see on next photo (huge flower, practically at ground level).
We drive 6000 km during this trip (from Istanbul to the border with Iran and back), but I can only say:
I never saw in nature such beautiful plant as Iris elegantissima; it's really, really every effort worth.
Hendrik

Hendrik,

Wonderful and precious pictures in situ  
 

Which other Oncos' species have you seen in your trip to Turkey?
I would like to see more pictures  

[Hendrik Van Bogaert]

Myriam,
We found Iris lycotis, but not in flower. From Iris sari only 1 flowering plant.
Have found other irises like Iris schachtii and Iris taochia.
During our trip we have encountered the best botanists of the word, those who find everything (like my friend says):
sheeps and goats.
Good evening
Enjoy the pictures
Hendrik

[Miriam]

Many thanks again for these marvelous pictures!
You know, goats and sheeps help in preserving and maintaining the Irises ,and I will explain:
They eat the weeds around the Irises and by doing that they clear the space for the Irises to grow (notice that Oncos grow in the wild in open areas and with not many weeds around them). The weeds literally "suffocate" the Oncos.
Unless sheeps, goats or fires which burn the weeds and not the rhizomes under the ground, the vegetation would become dense and high, and the Oncos eventually will disappear.
The problem occurs when there is a drought and there are very few annual plants, so the goats turn to the Irises and can cause them a severe damage. Normally they would prefer to eat weeds over the Irises.