RE: Re: TB: Louisa's Song
- Subject: RE: Re: TB: Louisa's Song
- From: J* C*
- Date: Sat, 23 Mar 2002 08:45:37 +1100
John Reed wrote:
>I guess my error is in thinking of AIS as an international society and >not
>exclusively an American one. I prefer to think of us as one world >instead
>of a lot of little blocks each touting their own superiority.
I guess the name says it. American Iris Society, as opposed to British Iris
Society, Iris Society of Australia, etc. If it were the World Iris Society,
or International Iris Society, one would expect it to fill that criterion.
Which of these societies is touting its own superiority? What an odd thing
to say.
>Maybe it is a bit myopic to think of AIS as the international one, but it
>really is the most universally recognized.
It holds the registration book, so must be recognised by all other
societies. I am sure there are many iris growers in Aus or Britain who never
have anything to do with the AIS. You should remember that you are looking
at it from an American perspective. America is not the universe, nor even
the centre of it .... not even the centre of the Solar system :-)
>how can that be if many of the best are not even eligible, and can >only
>win relatively invisible awards in their home countries.
From my perspective, the Aus Dykes award is quite visible.
Given the recent criticism of several US Dykes winners, and the explanation
that these are often voted in by very few judges, just imagine the
difficulty of selecting a world dykes winner. We would need to have as many
gardens as possible world wide, growing as many irises as possible, which
have been hybridised in many different parts of the world. The problem is
that we don't receive a lot of the really good US irises here for several
years, and then at a high cost because of importation, so Aus judges would
only be voting for Aus irises, and then only the ones that grow in trial
gardens accessible to them. The same works in reverse. How many of Graeme
grosveners irises have any of you seen? They seem to take the Dykes here
fairly regularly. How may of you have seen Alan Johnsons LA's? They are also
consistant Dykes winners.
The same problems exist here in Aus, re growing in different climates, soil
types etc. I grow a few of Graeme Grosvenors irises, but most Victorians
won't touch them because they fail to thrive. So there are trial gardens
here in different areas, growing completely different irises, and travel is
expensive for judges.
Barry Blyth does not grow his irises in the trial garden. He also hosts a
trial garden. I don't know what his reasoning is, but I know he has done a
lot to encourage new hybridisers to compete, and get their irises
recognised.
He does wind awards in the US (Aura Light has an AM) and trials irises in
the Wisley gardens. He also sends to the Italian Forenze, as does Graeme
Grosvenor. Form what I have seen, (which is not a lot) the Italian Forenze
seems to be the most 'international' competition.
Cheers, Jan in Aus, not touting superiority of the Aus system, nor taking
offence at Johns comments ... just trying to bring a different perspective.
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