Above, l to r: bluish-purple dwarf bearded iris (iris germanica) in front of blue oat grass; reddish-purple dwarf bearded iris in front of cherry blossoms; both in the Adventure Garden
My dwarf bearded irises have been blooming for a couple of weeks and I wanted to show you them before it was too late (nothing like a rainy Sunday morning to catch up on the garden blog!)
These are one of my favourite "repeat plants" for spreading around a sunny garden. Even though their blooms only last a few weeks, the flowers are spectacular. But not only that, their flat, fan-like leaves add interesting texture to the garden all season long because they contrast well with just about anything. The only potential drawback of these plants is that they are so vigorous that I find they need to be divided every few years. However, since they are shallow-rooted that is easy to do, and plus it is another reason why they make a great repeat plant! Spread them around or give some to friends!!
The taller bearded iris bloom a little bit later than the dwarf ones, so plant some of both for a longer bloom period if you like iris. Many have a wonderful, sweet scent, too.
Comments