TB: HIST:[Etc.] Mysteries
From: HIPSource@aol.com
Greetings.
I'd like put in a plug for the mystery irises among us, and urge that they be
treated kindly. Mainly I'm talking about the oldies, but not necessarily, for
irises of any age can easily become separated from their names.
I've been out looking at the stuff blooming today and I'm struck by the fact
that some of the best looking irises in my garden are, or came to me
initially, as unknowns. Now, in the past, as today, a fairly high percentage
of the irises available was mediocre. In acknowledgment of this raw fact, I
don't feel I have to drag home every antique I see. I prefer to focus on
things that announce their beauty clearly, or things which are unusual, or
which represent a departure from things I've seen elsewhere, or which seem
genetically complex for their apparent age. Good antique irises have a lot of
charisma and several I have found are absolutely stunning. In time, through
analysis, we may be able to reunite them with their names, and with their
rightful places in the great iris continuum, but for the nonce they are
gracing my garden and bringing me great joy.
We tend to be very name-oriented in the world of irises, and this is not a
bad thing. We like labels and registration descriptions and we know the
importance of keeping things tidy. There are irises out there which owe half
their attraction to their names, and there are also quite a few that are
enhanced by inaccurate names. I've noticed that when something is sailing
under a wrong name, it often is a name of a better or more famous iris than
it really is.
In some cases the surviving documentation and our best efforts will not be
adequate to unravel the mysteries. In these cases, I believe we must love the
irises anyway, knowing that our ignorance does not diminish their inherent
worth. It is important that we salute excellence in irises wherever we find
it, and not hold things cheap simply because they are anonymous, Nor must we
feel compelled to affix a name on them hastily simply to avoid that presumed
ignominy. An iris with no name is to be preferred to one with the wrong name.
In the case of the former, you have a mystery; in the case of the latter, you
have a falsehood.
Anner Whitehead
HIPSource@aol.com
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