Every grower is going to have a mis-label at some time or another.

Navajo Jewel always had a lovely blue tint in my garden - it received about 6 hrs sun. The beard is yellow in the throat ending the color of the falls. Daves Garden has several pics. One contributor says hers looks white or grey in certain light.

In my experience, weather affects color more than soil. But not to the extent of all pigment disappearing. Fogbound may be paler than in some saturated pics. Daves Garden has several pics showing color detail of the beards for comparison. Lighten the pictures in your viewer. See if they resemble yours then.

I've always wondered about my Navaho Jewell because mine has more blue than pictures I see. When I photograph mine though, it shows up lighter, more like pictures. My favorite iris in my yard.

Hi chere,

I don't think it is your soil or your weather. It's Schreiner's online catalog. They show Navajo Jewel as bright, almost turquoise blue. It's not. It's white with a blue cast. Same with Fogbound: the color in the catalog is wrong.

Be sure to double check the colors of irises you order with Dave's Garden photos or ask people here to post a photo before you buy. (This goes for daylilies too.) For some reason, very few iris sellers have decent photos. The only one that looks really true to color to me is Nicholls, but I have not yet seen all of the iris seller's sites, so take that with a grain of salt.

I would call Schreiner's and tell them that the iris you have is not the color in their catalog, and that you would like them to send you a blue iris replacement. Maybe that will inspire them to update their photos with something that reflects reality a little more closely.

If you search for "best blue iris" here you will get some good ideas for an iris to replace Navajo Jewel.

Good luck,
Renee

I grew Navajo Jewel for years and it is one of the color changers. All the color tones folks are seeing and mentioning are correct for this variety, at least as I have observed it in my garden. Buds formed under cool weather conditions will show alot of blue tone (and it really does lean to turquoise - something I have only ever seen in SDBs before), sometimes really deep blue. Buds formed under very warm weather conditions will be silvery gray or white, with very little blue at all. It followed this pattern the entire time I grew it. I've seen the same thing happen with a couple of historic varieties, but they were always orchid toned. I've not noticed it in another blue.

Mike

I am sure Mike's experience has the question covered. I would also like to add that I have seen significant color and substance changes in iris according to how established they are. In other words my 3 year old clumps were probably showing the best that cultivar has to offer. Where my yearling bloomers might not be as showy as they will be in subsequent years after they have gotten used to soil, climatic differences from where they were originated.
Some of mine went from mediocre disappointments in their first year to stunners 2 years later!!This has turned into part of the fun of it all.

Irisawe