1924, The Iris Garden

Journal of The New York Botanical Garden p.196, vol.xxv, no.295, July 1924

THE IRIS GARDEN, 1924

(with plate 294) (see attachment)

The present Iris season, while a week or two late, was a lasting one. Favorable weather at blooming time helped, and conditions in general made for a free-flowering Iris garden. The features of the Iris Test Garden this year were the blooming of some of the Mrs. Dean's California varieties, the excellent showing of the new varieties of the Amos Perry Collection, originated in England, and some of the Mohr hybrids, containing blood of Iris mesopotamica and others*

Among the better varieties which bloomed for the first time were Ambassadeur (Vilmorm), Suzanne Antissier (Denis), and Mile- Schwarz (Denis). Through the interest of Mr. J. C. Wister, President of The American Iris Society, a considerable number of the Irises not yet in the test garden have come in. Plans perfected for the coming year include the planting of an entire set, probably numbering over one thousand varieties, in alphabetical arrangement, on the hill opposite Fordham Hospital. This scheme will make it easier for students and growers to find and study varieties. Mrs. Lucius Hitchcock and Mrs. W. H. Peckham, of New Rochelle have completed the study of the dwarf varieties, and have perfected plans for gathering these together and displaying them in color masses along the rock ridge in the Iris Garden,

Kenneth R. Boynton.

SUMMER WORK WITH IRISES

The collection of Japanese Irises, planted at the foot of the Iris garden slope, entrance on Southern Boulevard, in elegant bloom during the first two weeks of July, contains over 60 named kinds; the plants were given by Mr. B. H. Farr and by Mr- J. C. Wister.

It is planned greatly to enlarge this plantation, which was experimental; the plants have grown here exceedingly well, however, showing that the situation suits them; many of the clumps may now be subdivided and the plants distributed over a much greater area, and many more plants have teen promised for setting out this year through the interest of Mrs. Wheeler H. Peckham, of the Garden Advisory Council, expert in Iris. The main Iris collection formed in cooperation with The American Iris Society, wonderfully attractive in June, now past blooming, is being rearranged into four series of specimens*

(1) An arrangement alphabetically by the names of over1,000 varieties, including many not hitherto represented in the collection, in new plots on the slope south of the present plantation*

(2) The dwarf kinds will be brought together in three plots.

(3) The main collection will be ultimately rearranged by color > for better floral effect, with some restriction of the area planted.

(4) The wild North American species will be grouped by themselves-

Dr. John K. Small, Head Curator, is making an important investigation, in cooperation with Mr. Charles Deering, of the native Irises of the Southern States and during several trips to Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas has brought many plants to the Garden which flowered this spring in nursery pits and fine paintings of the several kinds were made by Miss Mary E. Eaton for illustration in "Addisonia;" his studies and these paintings show that there are more species in that region than have been hitherto known, some of these as yet undescribed; he is now again in Florida for the purpose of obtaining the seed-pods of the various kinds so that they may be illustrated with the flowers; while these southern kinds flowered freely in the nursery pits they did not set fruit. The next experiment with them will be to plant all the kinds in an unprotected nursery plot in order to ascertain if any of them will prove hardy at New York; many are very beautiful.

N. L. Britton.

For more information on historic Irises visit the Historic Iris Preservation Society at http://www.historiciris.org/

-- BobPries - 2015-08-07