Re: CULT:Bulbous irises - "English"

Rodeny Barton wrote (29 Aug 97):

> Can anyone offer some cultural advice for the "English" Irises?

Brian Mathew has the following to say about these:
"The English Iris is very hardy and will grow well in an open position in
ordinary, reasonably fertile garden soil which is well supplied with
moisture and does not dry out too much in summer . . . (it) will do
perfectly well on alkaline soils."

and Sharon McAllister writes (30 Aug 97):

> "English Iris" is something of a misnomer. Their ancestors also Xiphium
species    > from Spain, but this line adapted to the colder climate of
England hundreds of > years ago.

My understanding is that the species ancestral to the "English" Iris are
native to the Pyrenees Mountains, which have a cooler and moister climate
than we usually associate with Spain. Only in song and rhyme does "the rain
in Spain fall mainly in the plain"; as in most other areas, the rain in
Spain falls mostly in the mountains! (<:

Jeff Walters in northern Utah  (USDA Zone 4, Sunset Zone 2)
cwalters@cache.net
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index