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thahalibut

What iris can I NOT live without?

thahalibut
11 years ago

I have a few older TB iris, all noids. I wanted to get the best ones I can for the California Sacramento valley. I prefer re or eml, & dont like solid purple, solid yellow or solid white. I want the best of the best! Any suggestions?

thanks

Comments (22)

  • aquawise
    11 years ago

    Ecstatic Echo is one on my Favorite ones.
    Check out Burgard Iris! They are there in California. Love them and there prices. Plants are wonderful.
    A few more!
    Armagedon
    Chasing Rainbows
    Jazz Solo
    Celebrations Song
    Here is my Gallery so far. Just to give you a starting point.

    Here is a link that might be useful: my Iris so far

  • hosenemesis
    11 years ago

    Ecstatic Echo does not do well in CA. It's my favorite, but it had bad plant habits and sprawled on the ground.

    The best reblooming irises are all in the colors you don't want, unfortunately.

    If you want a big show, big, big flowers- solid purple-blue Recurring Dream. It blooms here four times a year. For gorgeous purple-blue luminata but fewer flowers, Daughter of Stars. City Lights rebloomed a little for me as well- very pretty.

    Most prolific reblooming plicata: Mariposa Autumn. It's a machine. Darkest and most dramatic: Tennison Ridge or Decker. Both rebloom well.

    Most prolific in my garden: Total Recall- pale yellow and white. Blooms almost all year.

    Pinks: I get rebloom from Jennifer Rebecca, but it is slow to increase and took a long time to establish.
    Beverly Sills reblooms here early in June. It's prolific and has great form.
    Rose Teall is a gorgeous flower that reblooms very well here and increases well. A nice dark rosy pink.

    Violet Turner is the champ in my mom's garden. It's a bitone violet- very beautiful. It's blooming now.

    Clarence is a beautiful blue and white and reblooms well.

    Bonnie's Irises here in CA has a good selection of solid rebloomers. Bob can tell you which are most prolific for him.

    Riley Probst posts over on Reblooming Irises on Facebook, and gives the number of days different plants have bloomed in his Modesto garden. That might be something to check out.

    Renee

    Here is a link that might be useful: Reblooming Iris Society FB page

  • onederw
    11 years ago

    I love the peach and orchid/violet combination. Lots to choose from with those colors, but my "essentials" are Florentine Silk and Photogenic. And I'll never be without Dusky Challenger, which isn't really purple (not one of your faves) but rather an inky blue-violet that I call blurple. As a bonus, it's a super vigorous iris. Also have to have a good clear blue--for me that means Sea Power.

    Kay

  • wieslaw59
    11 years ago

    Aquawise, your Pink Horizon is a NOID. Too modern for such an old iris

  • aquawise
    11 years ago

    It came to me with that name! I cannot change it on flicker for some reason. Thanks for pointing that out. I know that some are not named correctly and I have been working to correct that. I have NOID it on my iphoto so I can now look for it proper name. Thanks, its people like you that help me make them right or just NOID them and enjoy them as they are.

  • thahalibut
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Great suggestions! Even though some are not reblooming they are beautiful.

    Decker, Total recall, Celebrations Song, Violet Turner, Beverly sills, & Mariposa Autumn are on my list.
    Florentine Silk and Photogenic have awesome colors, wish they rebloomed.
    tim

  • iris_gal
    11 years ago

    ** HOSENEMESIS ** - has Kiss of Kisses been a rebloomer for you?

    Rebloomers are often less spectacular than once bloomers. My *must-have* iris list has no rebloomers.

    These rebloomers appeal to me, minus the solids you don't want. The reason I don't have rebloom is water! Lack of. Rebloomers do need more water and fertilizer and I have been remiss in meeting their needs.

    Autumn Wine - Schreiner'02 or Christopherson'03 ??? rose-wine over dark wine rimmed rose-wine, would be welcome in my garden tho I've only seen pictures

    Blatant - Byers'90, yellow over beet red, love colors of this one in a friend's garden.

    Belvi Queen - Jensen'76, plicata, toasty cinnamon over pastel mustard edged maroony-cinnamon - nice fall colors, hasn't rebloomed for me yet

    Come What May - Ernst'95, warm apricoty yellow over yummy mallow rose edged lighter - love colors in friend's garden

    Double Agent - Maryott'86, rosy wine over deep maroon, very striking in friend's garden

    Double Click - Ghio'01, red purple luminata, have only seen pictures

    Eggnog - Byers'89, golden butterscotch, didn't rebloom for me, like its color and form

    Fashion Passion - hosenemesis has this one (warm white over maroon edged light)

    Heather Blush - Hamner'77, heather pink over heather lav. - the piece I gave my friend reblooms for her, not for me; but looks better in my small garden than her large one -- she has redwood trees etc. and needs more dramatic colors

    Her Royal Highness - Byers'89, if you like bright fushia-lav blends this may fit (have never seen in person)

    Kiss Me Twice - Maryott'01 (CA hybridizer that now does only daylilies), pics show it as a good-looking pink

    Lenora Pearl - Byers'88, BB, mine was too washed out pink for my taste; maybe I had a mislabel as it won the Knowlton Award and should have been exceptional

    My Friend Jonathan - Miller'94, pics show it in a range from reddish brick to russet to rose with lav. influence, Marvin on this forum reported 3 bloom seasons

    Queen Dorothy - purp & white plicata, the year I saw its rebloom the stalk was way down in the foliage -- don't know if this is typical behavior; good looking

    Smash - Craig'01, tet MTB with 10 buds, yel-ecru over viol-lav as far as I can tell from pics; the Craigs have been successfully working on florif. MTBs; criris on this forum posted Aug. rebloom

    Star Performer - Meek'84, white over peach irreg. edged white; would love to try this one as it's a fav. color combo of mine & registered as a M-L & RE

    Viva Mexico - Maryott'96, orange, reliable rebloom reported

    ==============
    Sutton's is a California hybridizer/grower who's bred lots of rebloomers. Their website may have more information for you.
    =============

  • hosenemesis
    11 years ago

    Kiss of Kisses has not rebloomed, but my mom has been moving it around every year. Her Double Agent rebloomed, but it only got one flower. Same with my Coral Chalice.
    Renee

  • njiris
    11 years ago

    I cannot live without some of the historics, but one does die I am inconsolate for days.
    Lets see what do I need more than anything in the world?
    Jacquesiana
    Acic Blush
    Angelus
    Alpine Glow
    Rose Unique
    Prosper Laugier
    Hand Painted
    Twist of Fate
    Copper Frills
    Hey Boy
    Fascination
    Barbara Walter
    Rajah Brooks
    Calcutta
    Sandstone
    A million others, I cannot remember their names (lol)
    A few more
    Citoyen
    Annette
    Ducth Cocolate
    Partita
    Bellboy (mtb)
    Waterboy (SDB)
    And I cannot forget Busy Being Blue (to die for)

    This post was edited by njiris on Sat, Jan 12, 13 at 16:36

  • iris_gal
    11 years ago

    Yay, njiris is back.

  • illinoisdoglover
    11 years ago

    Wish I was in an area that I could have rebloomers actually reboom. This year was my first time to ever see a rebloomer in November. It was given to me and I believe it was Clarence.I will see if I can find a picture. So now that I have become addicted to iris, the question now is: "How do you contrlol the addiction?". I can not stop adding to my "want" list. I am amazed how many there are and that I seem to need. I will be researching the ones you folks mentioned to see if they are something I should be looking for. I have the same probelm with my peony addiction. To date, I am close to 140 named peonies. Crazy. I guess it could be a worse addiction. Does anyone like the greens and browns? Here is Appolodorus and next post will be Cafee Mocha.

  • illinoisdoglover
    11 years ago

    Cafee Mocha

  • illinoisdoglover
    11 years ago

    What about white iris. Just love "Mesmerizer".Love those horns.

  • hosenemesis
    11 years ago

    Apollodorus has always captured my attention, as has Harvest Maiden. Mesmerizer is a great iris, isn't it?
    Renee

  • illinoisdoglover
    11 years ago

    I will have to check out Harvest Maiden. This will be a exciting year or two for me seeing so many new iris bloom and being able to identify the iris I have in my collection. I have been learning that many iris from California do not grow well here in Illinois. One example, Bewilderbeast and Decadence have been impossible. Any suggestions in replacemnets for those?

  • hosenemesis
    11 years ago

    I guess things that do not grow here! I can't grow Ecstatic Echo, Impressionist, or Starship Enterprise in So Cal. Friends in Minnesota and Utah report success with them, though.

    There is nothing more exciting than seeing new irises bloom in your garden. You are going to have a wonderful spring.

  • illinoisdoglover
    11 years ago

    Harvest Maiden is beaitiful. I will have to consider adding that one to my collection. Could anyone suggest some iris that are almost exactly like Eleanor Roosevelt? I am going to try to identify some iris in my garden this year when they bloom. Many seems to look very similiar. according to pictures on the web. I am not a expert, just a plant lover and have several that looks so similiar to it. I traded for some dark purple noids last year and was told they believe they are Eleanor Roosevelt. Do you have any thought or comments about this Historic iris. I hope it blooms true since the pictures I was sent look beautiful.

  • hosenemesis
    11 years ago

    There are quite a number of irises that look like Eleanor Roosevelt to me. Here in CA, they go by names like Grandma's Purple Flag. They tend to grow very well here, bloom a lot, and be quite small plants. People with extensive experience can usually identify them and tell the differences.

    One thing you can do to prepare to ID your irises as best as possible: start a log book. Make a map and label the plants with markers. In the spring, record how tall the plant is, how tall the flower stalk is, how big the flower is, how many buds it gets and whether they are single- or double-socketed, how many lateral branches come off the main stalk, and whether the base of the plant has a purplish tinge to it or not. You should also record when it begins blooming and how long the bloom period is. Take lots of pictures; clear close-ups help. Note the colors of the beards and the other parts of the flower. Once you look that closely and write down all of the details, you start to notice the differences when you are looking at photos on the Internet. It's fun. Then you can post photos here and Irisgal and others will help you ID them if possible.
    Renee

  • illinoisdoglover
    11 years ago

    Thank you for all the iformation. I already have a log book started, but will need to make room for recording all the info you suggested. I have 99% of them marked, but we all know by the time spring gets here in Illinois, sometimes markers are pushed up and moved around from ground thaw and critters. Not to mention the dogs. I have been trying to keep log books and pictures for most of my plants but never got involved in recording all the other info you suggested. Will see what happens this spring. It is fine that they do not all get identified, will love them just the same. I find that I get new iris all the time, must be from bee pods. riverbank projects always needs more plants anyway. Sounds like fun.Here is one such unknown. I am sure the one I am hopeing to be Eleanor Roosevelt will bloom this year.

  • mccommas
    11 years ago

    Sugar Blues.

    Besides being so enormous and colorful, they muliply like rabbits.

    Also keep in mind so called re-bloomers need a tremedous amounts of light to re-bloom. I have been told that unless you are in the Pacific Northwest, don't count on it.

    Here is a link that might be useful: sugar blues

  • illinoisdoglover
    11 years ago

    Sugar Blues is georgeous. Need to add that to my list. Pictures are beautiful. Love the size and fact that they multiply fast. For the first time in my life I had a iris rebloom this past November. It was Calrence. So surprised. Usually never happens in my zone.

  • mccommas
    11 years ago

    When one does rebloom for me or in my area, it is almost too late! The first one I got I had to cut and bring in because it started to snow!

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