Re: Re: Re: [iris-species] Kochii

Colleen, there are photos and a very thorough verbal description of the authentic *Iris germanica* in existence, as it is the taxonomic "type" for the Genus Iris.  Kochii is of the same general genetic constitution, being a sterile 44-chromosome IB as is the authentic *germanica.*  Germanica, however, is not a rich purple.
 
Curiously enough, one of the best "photographs" is the Van Gogh painting of irises.  Germanica is the one believed to be captured in oils on canvas rather than dyes on film.
 
There are a substantial number of these 44-chromosome hybrids that have been in existence hundreds or perhaps even thousands of years in Europe and Asia.  All of them apparently arise from natural hybridization between bearded tetraploids and one of the *Iris lutescens* complex.  Several of the known ones are purple, one of which is Kochii. Germanica is a bitone violet-toned blue.
 
Neil Mogensen    z  7  western NC

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