Good morning, Chuck and all.
I have to say that I agree with you 100%. I was one of those cold climate growers that started with TBs and quickly became disillusioned when nothing survived our -40 to -50 C winters. In fact, I almost stopped growing iris altogether in the 90s (except for the old standby's that you can't kill with a stick). The someone (and you know who you are out there) put me on to the medians and the rest is history! I guess that is why there is such a flurry when something other than a TB wins the Dykes. I have to admit that when looking to add new iris to my gardens, I do check the awards they have won. Now I also check where they came from and where that does not guarantee it will survive and grow in SW MB, I'm going in with my eyes open.
And, I for one, am very glad that you steer people away from unsuitable for their area choices. I remember with Starship Enterprise (which I absolutely, positively had to have) that you wouldn't sell it to me as a new introduction until it had proved itself in your garden. I think I ordered it three times before you finally agreed to sell it to me and I only got it once you had told me you couldn't guarantee its performance. Well, that one did survive but took 5 years to bloom and once it had, started to go down hill. I doubt it will be back this year. At $25 Canadian it was an expensive lesson and I promise to listen to you more in future years.....hopefully. :) Your honesty about performance and not just trying to sell everything to everybody is appreciated out here!
BJ in SW MB, Canadian Prairies, Zone 2b CDA/3 USDA
>
> There are biases towards TB with Dykes as these are more popular, and
> more importantly, biases towards the warmer climates where there are
> more judges. Thus there have been top awarded bearded iris in past
> (including Dykes Medal Winners) that are good growers only in warmer
> climates, and not the rest of the AIS regions.
>
> As a commercial grower in a colder climate (colder part of Southern
> Ontario, Canada) I often see new iris enthusiasts selecting iris based
> on the awards they have received. <snip>
