In the Iris Garden: The Weed of the Month Club

A beautiful iris garden in Monterey Bay that does not belong to the Weed of the Month Club!

     While dating myself since the various products of the month clubs seemed to have all disappeared, I used to joke in talks to groups that I belonged to the Weed of the Month Club. By that, I mean that weeds are opportunistic—get the tall ones under control and watch the short weeds move into that spot. Over the years, I have found 4 specific weeds to be the greatest problem here: morning glory, spurge, nut grass, and dock. Each have their specific problems and require different approaches to keep them under control.

Every beautifully groomed garden needs a great iris--my favorite new to me iris this year--Jerico Springs

     Morning glory (Calystegia ) arrived at this yard in mushroom compost that I had bought to build up the soil in the back of the yard. So often trying to solve one problem results in the arrival of a new issue. Roundup was suppose to be the cure all for morning glory, but like most panaceas it turned out to be less than was promised. Morning glory is amazingly vigorous—its roots have been found 10  feet down into the ground in trenches and morning glory seed can germinate for more than 10 years. Once in the garden, eradication is not really going to happen, so the focus has to be on keeping it under control. I have learned to never let morning glory flower since that only exacerbates the problem. Having reduced the morning glory infestation to sprigs here and there, I use a small quart spray bottle with Roundup and that does work.

     Spurge (Euphorbia maculata) is another weed that is not only a total pest, but requires immediate attention. After letting it get out of hand for a couple of years, I have found that the best solution is to nip it at ground level when it just has a few leaves. My tool of choice is an O-ring hoe; the sharp 0-ring is perfect for spot weeding. Unfortunately the manufacture seems to be out of business and I keep having to replace the handle, but that is a small price to pay for spurge control. Last year I thought I really had spurge on the run. One day I was cleaning the walk when I noticed what seemed to be spurge, but not the normal all green clone that I usually find. Yip, my spurge now has a brown and green clone that is hard to spot—once again the high hopes of eradication have been dashed.

     Nut grass (Cyperus rotundus) arrived in the yard by hiding in the roots of iris rhizomes that had not been properly and thoroughly cleaned. There was a time that I despaired that the nut grass was beyond control, but then I found Manage (no longer made, but I continue to use it up since one ounce was only slightly less expensive than a ounce of gold). At first I had to use the Solo backpack sprayer over large areas and Manage does work, though slowly. It translocates slowly to the roots and the nuts, so the kill is gradual over 3-4 weeks. Years into the battle, I am now down to hitting nut grass with the small spray bottle, but total eradication is most likely a phantom.

    Dock (Rumex crispus ) was in the yard when I moved here and in recent reading, I learned that the young leaves are eatable, though I am not sure why anyone would want to eat it. The county agriculture inspector told me that the solution was hoeing them off at the ground or Roundup. With its long, branched taproot, hoeing only seems to encourage more growth and Roundup seems to be the best solution if applied with great care. I've had to use the Solo backpack on large areas, but now I am back to the spray bottle since I can drip Roundup on dock leaves around irises without spray on the iris leaves.

     With all chemicals, correct application is vital. Roundup will “tulip” iris flowers, so any time that I use it over a large area, I wash off any nearby iris foliage when I am done; Roundup damage does not seem to be permanent, but the loss of good bloom for one year can be hard to take—I did a major round of cursing the neighbors a few years back when 40% of the iris bloomed with Roundup damage to to their gardener using it for everything and anything. When using Manage, Manage splash seems to interrupt the correct expression of color in irises and daylilies, but the effects wear off within a few months.

     No matter how hard we all try, the weeds will always be with us. It does not help, either, if you have neighbors who allow their weeds to grow unchecked—on the east of the lot, I fight the encroachment of Bermuda grass from that neighbor; on the west of the lot, the avid gardener has given up any effort to control weeds (or snails, but that is another story) and I have to watch for nut grass sprigs invading under the fence. Just as we have the pageant of color in the garden starting in the spring, we also have the pageant of weeds to entertain and disgust us.

Another lovely, weed free garden at Napa County

Whoa...Back Up...Where Did Median Iris Come From?

After I posted my last blog about Median Iris titled "Medians-Who Hybridized The Little Beauties" I received a comment from a wonderful irisarian that reminded me I did not start at the beginning of the life of Medians. I fully intended to introduce everyone to the Median hybridizers who were honored with the Bennet C. Jones Award for Median Hybridzing Excellence, beginning with the first recipient and namesake of the award. But first I am going to backtrack and start with the pioneering hybridizers of the Median Iris. Then, I will introduce the award for the best intermediate iris and the men it is named for. Finally, I will show you photos of some of the award winners.

Much of the earliest hybridizing work was done by Foster and Dykes (UK) in the latter part of the 19th century, with crosses being made between tall and dwarf species. In 1898, William John Caparne from Guernsey, off the coast of Normandy, started selling what he called a "New Race of Irises (Intermediates)". Due to his good natured sharing, other nurserymen both in America and the UK further developed his introductions as their own. Caparne’s achievements were eclipsed to the point where even his original creation of the Intermediate hybrids became obscured. Caparne continued to develop his 'Intermediate' irises well into the mid 1930s. Then in the U.S. the Sass brothers, Grace Sturtevan, and others produced intermediates, and the Sass brothers crossed I. pumila with tetraploid tall bearded irises. With continued work came what we now call standard dwarf bearded irises that were fertile. Thus the early development of Median Iris was well on its way.

Jacob Sass

Hans (1868-1949) and Jacob (1872-1945) Sass were born in Alt Duvenstedt, Germany and immigrated to the United States with their parents in 1884. They settled on a farm in Nebraska, and were interested in breeding garden flowers at an early age. They bred irises, peonies, daylilies, lilacs, gladiolus, lilies and other garden plants. When they became charter members of The American Iris Society, they had bred irises for more than a decade. The two brothers were very close and shared ideas on hybridizing as well as seedling pollen. Their irises won many awards and are to be found throughout the pedigrees of nearly all the modern tall bearded irises in our gardens. But their early fame as hybridizers came for their work producing intermediate bearded irises. They were among the first to cross iris pumila with tall bearded iris, producing the true intermediates.  Crossing dwarf irises with tall bearded irises, they were the first American breeders to develop many new colors and forms in the intermediate class. They saw the great advantage of intermediate bearded irises on the windy prairie, and the value of a type of iris that filled out the bloom season between the early dwarf irises and the later tall bearded irises. Hans was the first to introduce a reblooming intermediate iris 'Autumn Queen', in 1926.

Hans P Sass 1950

In 1966 The American Iris Society awarded the first Hans and Jacob Sass Medal. This medal is restricted to intermediate bearded (IB) irises. The IBs are 16-27” tall with flowers that are 3½"-5" wide. The IBs fit both in size and bloom time between the SDBs and the TBs. The Hans and Jacob Sass Medals are provided by the Median Iris Society and named in honor of Hans Sass (1868-1949) and Jacob Sass (1872-1945). Below are several photos of Sass Medal winners, the year they won the award, their hybridizer and hometown.

1962 'Blue Asterisk' Wilma Greenlee Chrisman IL

1995 'Blue Eyed Blond' Allan Ensminger Lincoln NE

1965 'Cutie' Schreiner Salem OR

2004 'Gnu Rayz' Brad Kasperek Elwood UT

1997 'Hot Spice' Terry Aitken Vancouver WA

1970 'Drummer Boy' Schreiner Salem OR

2010 'Ruby Slippers' Keith Keppel Salem OR

1982 'Pink Kitten' Vernon Wood Pinole CA

2006 'Midsummer Night’s Dream' Lowell Baumunk Littleton CO

1961 Award 1968 Medal 'Moonchild' Tom Craig Escondido CA

1988 'Oklahoma Bandit' Hooker Nichols Dallas TX

2005 'Starwoman' Marky Smith Yakima WA (Won the Dykes in 2008)

1996 'Lemon Pop' Larry Lauer Wilton CA

Medians---Who Hybridizes the Little Beauties?

In 2006 a new award was presented for the first time. It was the Bennett C. Jones Award for Outstanding Median Hybridizing and is an annual award given by the Median Iris Society to an iris hybridizer who made extraordinary contributions to the breeding of median iris. It was presented to Bennett Jones at the Median Iris Society General Meeting in Portland, OR May 2006.

In the mid 1940s Bennett Jones was among the first hybridzers to incorporate I. pumila into his work and this led to the birth of the Standard Dwarf Bearded Iris. He is well known for launching contrasting beards, advancements in form, success in improving colors and exploring new colors and patterns in the SDBs. Through the years Bennett introduced over 100 irises, in classifications ranging from Miniature Dwarf through Tall Bearded and even Pacific Coast Natives. Over the years he won medals for twelve of his iris from The American Iris Society. He received the Hans & Jacob Sass Medal for his intermediate iris, 'Peachy Face' in 1983. It was one of the first intermediate bearded irises recognized for its fertility.

'Peachy Face'

'Gingerbread Man'

Bennett received Cook Douglas Medals for his Standard Dwarf irises, 'Cherry Garden,' the amazing burgundy red; 'Gingerbread Man,' with its bold contrasting colors; 'Cotton Blossom,' with its amazing width and form that went on to be one of the great breeders of all time; 'Kentucky Bluegrass,' a grass green with a fern-green spot pattern around a large blue beard; 'Rain Dance'' a pure blue blue-bird; 'Sun Doll,' a successful attempt to clarify and intensify colors; 'Orange Tiger,' a neon orange; 'Bedford Lilac,' a flax blue; and 'Dot Com,' nearly a turquoise spot pattern on falls.

'Cherry Garden'

'Cotton Blossom'

'Bedford Lilac'

'Sun Doll'

'Dot Com'

'Orange Tiger'

'Kentucky Blue Grass'

'Rain Dance'

Bennett also won two Knowlton Medals for his Border Bearded irises, 'Frenchi' and 'Crystal Bay.'

'Frenchi'

He also received AIS medals in 1974 for Achievement in Hybridizing and in 1979 for Distinguished Service to The American Iris Society. His irises won awards from iris societies in Germany, Austria, Italy, and England. In 1995 his last award was the Foster Memorial Plaque which is awarded by The British Iris Society to individuals of any nationality who make substantial contributions to the  advancement of the genus iris. 

In recent years, Mr. Jones introduced 'True Navy,' a nearly full navy blue color; 'Circus Dragon,' a colorful yellow with darker spot and bright orange beards; 'Sedona' with pure pink standards and a sandstone orange brown fall with a red orange beard; and 'Murphy’s Law,' a greenish amoena with orange beards.

'True Navy'

'Murphy's Law'

Mr. Jones was a wonderful person full of love for his fellow man with a great zest for life. He was a mentor to hybridizers all across the country. In 1952, he co-founded the Greater Portland Iris Society and was its first president. Bennett was also active in the American Iris Society, serving two terms on the board of directors, as regional vice-president, and as chairman of the American Iris Society's 1960 national convention, and co-chairman in 1972.


Bennett and his wife moved to Portland in 1943, and bought a half-acre lot near Raleigh Hills. Later that year, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was assigned to the Seabees, stationed on Guam. After the war, he returned to Portland and operated Raleigh Hills Gardens, selling his irises to customers worldwide. He built his own house, where he and Betty shared a rich, fulfilling life until her death in 1981. It would remain his home until 2005. In 1986, Bennett remarried, to Evelyn Minnick of Kansas City, Missouri, a noted iris hybridizer in her own right. He spent his working career with the United States Post Office, working the mail trains, later the highway post office, and finally in the special delivery unit at the main Portland office, retiring in 1975.

He passed away in March 2009. We will always remember his outstanding work with the median iris and is his overall dedication to iris.


I hope you will get to know the wonderful people who helped bring the median iris into our world in the exciting forms and colors by reading about them. The Median Iris Society has a wonderful book available for sale; The Medianite 50^th Anniversary History Edition that is full of events, history and hybridizing (also a great collector's item).

In my upcoming blogs I will look for the accomplishments and contributions of other median iris hybridizers. I will explore the works of Keith Keppel from Salem, OR; Terry Aitken from Vancouver, WA; Paul Black from Salem, OR; David Niswonger from Cape Girardeau, MO; and Allan Ensminger from Lincoln, NE. In the meantime I hope all your iris babies are soon blooming profusely.

Double or Just Trouble?

In a previous blog we talked about doubling the chromosome number in Siberians to produce tetraploids. Now I’d like to talk about another kind of doubling - doubling the petal number. When we use “double” as a description of a flower this is actually not very precise. Generally it would mean more than usual number of petals and not a strict doubling of all the flower parts. However, at least three different effects can cause this increase in petal count in Siberians (I'm using "petals" here to include both petals (standards) and sepals (falls)). The resulting flowers look quite different from each other. Probably you could see the same effects in other irises, but we’re into Siberians here. The three routes to “doubling” are:

1. The reproductive parts of the plant (stamens, stylearms, ovary) are converted to petal--like structures (petalloids). Example 1 shows a seedling where this is the predominant effect.
2. Flowers are hose-in-hose where a second (or more) flower grows up inside the first one. This can be seen in example 2 with a second complete flower growing up inside the first. Incidentally, this iris was introduced recently as Double Play.
3. The flower has six falls through the conversion of the normal three standards into falls and with the sexual parts of flower unchanged. Example 4 shows this effect (introduced as Six Love) but we won’t be talking about it further here.

Example 1

Example 2

Example 3

Example 4

The first two effects can be created by the same mutation – a master gene that turns on the machinery to produce ovary, styles and stamens loses its activity and the master gene controling petal formation in the same cell comes alive and takes over, so we get lots of extra petal-like structures at the expense of the reproductive parts. The same master gene is also responsible for making sure that only one flower is produced from each terminal flower meristem. When it loses its function this means that more than one meristem can produce flowers, hence the hose-in-hose, multiple flower effect.  The 6- fall trait is caused by a different mutation that acts specifically in controlling production of the standards (petals). These effects can occur together complicating things further in terms of flower structure.

So that’s the basics of how it happens, but why get excited about it? Well, everyone likes variety and mutipetal flowers are very popular in many of the major ornamental groups e.g. Japanese iris, peonies, dahlias, lilacs, roses, petunias, and daffodils. More petals more flower power. Oh, by the way did you spot that the photo in example 3 is a daffodil and not an iris? The control of flower form is similar across most, if not all, flowering plants and the same kinds of mutations occur so that we see these related multipetal effects everywhere.

In addition to the extra fullness, several special effects are possible with multipetals including repeating expression of falls with strong blaze signals as in Kaboom (Bauer-Coble, 2001: Example 5), or alternating layers of color when you have a hose-in-hose structure in a bicolor or amoena iris (color/white/color/white sequence) as shown with the seedlings in examples 6 (not fully open) and 7.  These need further development but the effects already make some novel and rather beautiful flowers.

Example 5

Example 6

Example 7

Mulipetal (double) flowers have long been known but have not always been appreciated. The famous French naturalist Rousseau said in his “Letters on the Elements of Botany” (1787, 2^nd Ed.)   “Whenever you find them double do not meddle with them, they are disfigured; or if you like, dressed in our fashion: nature will no longer be found among them; she refuses to reproduce anything from monsters thus mutilated, for if the more brilliant parts of the flower, namely the corol, be multiplied, it is at the expense of the more essential parts, which disappear under this addition of brilliancy”

Rousseau has hit on a real problem here. At least with the current multipetal Siberians, it would be wonderful if every flower looked the same and was as well organized as the ones in the photos, but sadly, that isn’t so. Every flower on the plant may be different, and some can be less organized in form and quite untidy. Why is this? The probable answer is that there are two copies of the genes for each trait in diploid plants. In the case of multipetal Siberians only one of these two genes is in the mutated state and the other is “normal”, so these two control systems fight it out in each flower – sometimes the mutant form predominates and the flower is almost fully doubled and seems symmetrical; in other cases the normal gene tends to compete better (for unknown reasons) and the flower is less double and quite mixed up in its structure. Only by finding a way to get both these genes in the mutated (inactive) form can one put this battle to rest and expect to get fully double flowers every time. And this is not so easy to do when the reproductive parts of the flower, especially the ovaries, are heavily modified or not present! There is some pollen on the sides of the petalloids at times which is active and allows crosses to be made quite readily with standard Siberians, but, so far, crosses with mutipetals as the pod parents have been unsuccessful – and these plants never seem to produce bee pods either. So should we redouble our efforts to get these potentially perfect (and perfectly sterile) multipetal forms or is it more trouble than it’s worth?

What Are They...Median Iris?

I am sitting here transfixed...by my window watching it rain--well actually pour down. This might not seem to be such an unusual thing, unless you know that we have had only .6 of an inch of rain since September 2010. Well, what am I doing sitting here…I’m going out to run in the rain! Will be back to work on this blog when it stops raining.

It is now 24 hours later and here I am; very happily back to my computer. My iris just got 1.44 inches of rain, all since I began working on this blog! Now I am watching out my window as a skinny red robin pecks at a peach that fell from my tree and a beautiful Baltimore oriole is eating off my hummingbird feeder and being buzzed by three hummers. I could be content to just watch it all, but I must begin this blog. It will be about my newest love in iris and I must tell you I am not an expert on them…the median iris. I planted my first medians four years ago, and I will tell you my progress at the end of this blog if you stick around to read it.  

Who's First In Line?

Median Iris –What are they? They are a group of bearded iris that are shorter than the tall bearded (TB) iris and taller than the miniature dwarf bearded (MDB). They bloom after the MDBs and mostly before the TB iris. They extend the iris bloom season with regal form, remarkable colors and patterns. Median iris are smaller and compact compared to the tall bearded iris. They make perfect plants for borders or in the front of your flower beds, and make ideal additions in rock gardens. Medians tolerate wide varieties of conditions being much more cold tolerant, withstanding strong winds, and strong rain downpours. When the Median Iris Society organized in 1948, five new classes of bearded irises (MDB, SDB, IB, MTB and BB) were added to the already popular TB iris class.

(click on images for a larger view)

The result of this effort was having four distinct bloom seasons starting with the miniature dwarf iris season, followed a little later by the standard dwarf iris season, and then later came the intermediate bearded iris season and finally the border (BB), miniature tall (MTB) and TB season.

Median iris come in four different classes.

1.   The crossing of I. pumila with the tall bearded (TB) iris resulted in what is known as the standard dwarf bearded iris (SDB) type. The SDBs are 8–15” in height with blooms that are 2-4” in width. The SDBs bloom after the miniature dwarf bearded iris and slightly into the intermediate iris bloom season. They have thick attractive mounds of sword-like green leaves that grow throughout most of the season. The SDBs have an enormous variety of colors and patterns and that combined with a great vigor and ease of growth make them a wonderful edition to all gardens.

2.   Then there are the crosses of SDBs with TBs (or TBs with species iris) that grow into the intermediate bearded iris (IB). The IBs are 16-27” tall with flowers that are 3½-5 wide. The IBs fit both in size and bloom time between the SDBs and the TBs. They are very hardy growers, dependable bloomers, disease resistant and can withstand high winds, sudden freezes, and other unexpected weather changes. They come in the full range of colors and combinations as the TBs.

3.   Next we have the miniature tall bearded (MTB) iris that are 16-25 inches in height with very slender dainty stalks and nicely branched stalks with flowers whose combined width and height is not more than 6” total. They started as diploid runts of iris that first appeared in TB gardens. Then hybridizers used I. aphylla's, a family of shorter tetraploid species bearded irises that increase branching and have smaller flowers than TB’s. They started by crossing I. aphylla with selected BB and short TB until they developed a tetraploid MTB that met the same requirements as the diploid MTB. The MTBs have a very pleasant fragrance that is essential in this lovely iris also aptly named the table iris. The flowers are less ruffled and more tailored than the TBs. The boom season is later the IBs and about the same as border bearded (BB) and TB. This class is ideal for floral arrangements. MTBs are the best branched of the medians, and fit nicely in the garden.

4.  The class of medians known as border bearded (BB) started as small versions of TB iris that did not overpower other plants in an ornamental bed, and did not blow over in high winds, and worked well in flower bed borders. Over the years since BB became a class, hybridizers have made great strides in the improving the vigor, consistency of height, flower proportion, colors and color patterns. Bloomstalks of BB should be 16" to 27.5", the width of the flowers should not exceed 5”, the height of the flower should not exceed 8.5"and they should bloom along with the tall beardeds. BB iris look like and bloom like the TB iris but their size are smaller and properly balanced for its smaller size with erect fans that do not obscure the blooms.

I am Debbie Strauss, a newbee in the median iris world. I am a member of The American Iris Society and just became the director in charge of the silent auction at the National Conventions. I am a Median Iris Society member and their new fundraising chair. I live in far West Texas in a desert-like environment. TB iris do wonderful here, especially if you stress them out before planting the new rhizomes (if you purchased them from anywhere except West Texas). Four years ago our local iris society hosted a fall regional convention for Texas; I was the iris auction chair. I wrote to every hybridizer I could and sent them a little money and asked for iris for our regional auction. I was not particular about what they sent and I received many many iris. Hmmm…lots of medians…their colors and patterns were too tempting, so I bid on and won many of them…I planted them and the first year they all did well and multiplied and at least half of them bloomed. Then the second year…I can’t even describe how delighted I was when the SDBs were lovely large clumps and bloomed beautifully. If you look at the photos below, you will see why my first plantings of median iris made me a big fan of the wonderful median iris classes.

The pictures below are from two year clumps! They are growing in my West Texas soil that is a very alkaline sandy mix. They are planted along side my hot driveway, with a large stinky hedge behind them. We get very little rain, only a few winter days below freezing, and rarely have below zero temperatures. We have wind with spring gusts from 30 – 60 mph nearly every day. To make it really bad; we had 68 days this summer of over 100-degrees and until last week only .6 inch of rain since last September. So for any iris to grow and prosper here…takes a miracle…well a very good hardy plant anyway. 

Even though the TB irises are the most popular iris among the AIS membership, I believe it might be because conventions and shows are scheduled around the bloom season of the TB iris. Perhaps like me, many people have not given the medians a chance. Even though only one border bearded iris, 'Brown Lasso' and one Intermediate Bearded iris, 'Starwoman,' have been awarded the AIS’s highest award, the Dykes Medal, I think those numbers will increase. Here are pictures of these two wonderful median Dykes winners.

Brown Lasso

I am predicting with all the stellar work of the median iris hybridizers median iris popularity will increase leaps and bounds in the near future. If you have not yet planted a median iris or two, take a leap of faith, look through the many colors, patterns, sizes, and bloom times and get started. Oh, by the way… I took "Best of Show" two years with a median iris! They thought they scheduled the show for TB bloom!