Re: I. virginica

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About 20 years ago I ordered I. virginica. It grew reluctantly, survived the winter but did not bloom and died the second winter. Ordering seeds from SIGNA gave me seedlings which also disappeared the second year. I could not understand why my Iris virginica var. shrevei grew so well in this climate. 

 Finding iris blades between cattails in a wetland near our home (while living in Northern Illinois) I had dug a fan and planted it at the edge of the property where the drainage from the forest preserve kept our soil moist, but forgot about it. 3 years later I saw blue flowers from the window, where no flowers should have been. Back in 88 I could not find this Iris in any book. By that time the wetland had been drained and  filled in and the Illinois Highway Dept. had built garages (illegal in the State of Illinois, I found out later!) 

When I asked my friend Virginia about this Iris, she told me: 'Call Florence Stout, she is the secretary of SIGNA and she will know!' It's a small world! I had just met Florence the week before at a daylily meeting! Florence became my iris mentor and I joined SIGNA. This lovely Iris is responsible for my obsession.

Liselotte