Re: HYB:toughness

--- In iris-talk@y..., "wmoores" <wmoores@w...> wrote:

> My OFF BROADWAY appears tender here and gets nipped back quite
often  during the winter, but just the other day Laurie in
northern  Minnesota posted a nice bloom on it.  Wimpy tender in
MS and rugged  in MN?? <

I think Walter must be breeding his babies for the far North
...they must like/need the cold?
 
> Walter Moores Enid Lake, MS USA 7/8 (Getting good reports on
hardiness from Ellen Gallagher in northern NH).<

There is no question that Walter's VIOLET SHIMMER, CONFEDERATE
ROYALTY,ASCII ART, LEMON CHESS (fewer bloomstalks than the rest
but still doing well) are doing outstanding here. They are all
TBs and 'Violet' (blooming at 44" with 13 bloomstalks is a
traffic stopper along with 'Conf. R.'. Also,  WARM PUPPY (IB but
looks like a BB here in habit) has been a mass of blooms for
over 3 weeks. 

How come? I think Walter MUST use hardy or tough or vigorous
stock (take your pick with the adjectives). Don't forget we go
down to -40 F here. These plants have been here for three years
and this is their maiden bloom. Ok - we only went down to -32
this last winter. Still, darn cold. 

We have had super good bloom with Rick Tasco's progeny from CA
as well. Strangly enough we have had a lot of rot and poor
performance from those hybridizer in colder zones. I speak only
of bearded irises here, principally TBs and IBs. I don't know
why and not being a hybridizer or a scientist, I to go back to
the hybridizers whose plants do well for us...no big mystery
there.

As Lloyd Zurbrigg said a few years ago on the old iris-list,
"Cold is not an enemy of irises". How true that is. It may be
not advantangeous to rebloomers but considering we bloom late, I
personally don't care. Give us good bloom during bloom season. 
 

Ellen 
===== 
Ellen Gallagher / ellengalla@yahoo.com
Berlin, NH, USA / Zone 3







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