Re: Bronze Beauty

Clarence writes...

>Sorry, Mike, but the Barr BRONZE BEAUTY was in the Check List since
>1929....and takes precedence.

Unfortunately, Clarence is absolutely right. No mention of Hoogiana Bronze
Beauty can be found in the 1929 or 1939 Check Lists. You will find little
mention of the Hoog brothers, particularly Thomas M. Hoog who hybridized
Hoogiana Bronze Beauty and a host of others for C. G. van Tubergen
Nurseries of Zwanenberg, Holland between 1897 and 1906. None can deny that
Ethel Anson Peckham was a staunch Anglophile!

IMO, the plant later named I. hoogiana, was obtained for the Hoog brothers
by Max Leichtlin, collector for the C. G. van Tubergen firm. I further
believe that Dykes saw the hybridizing work being done by the Hoog's with
I. hoogiana and requested a start of the species plant. To visualize what
undoubtedly took place, you must realize that to the Dutch nurserymen of
that period, a valuable foundation plant was nearly priceless. Rare tulip
bulbs well illustrate this. Needless to say, Dykes did not obtain a start
of I. hoogiana from the Hoogs.

I. hoogiana is a beautiful plant and tetraploid to boot. Dykes had a rare
feel for tet iris and undoubtedly put out a request to all his collectors
to obtain a specimen. Graeber collected I. hoogiana, in Turkestan, for
Dykes in 1913. And, to his everlasting credit, Dykes named the plant after
the Hoogs,  despite all.

As long as we are talking 'iris that get no respect' lets mention BLUE MOON
(Lawrence 1930) (I.hoogiana X I. stolonifera). The 1930 aril BLUE MOON was
not even considered when Mrs. Richter released the name of an unintroduced
1935 TB BLUE MOON to Elizabeth Scheffy for her Siberian. In the 50s, in the
United States, arils were hardly a blip on anyone's radar.


Best regards,

Mike Lowe, mikelowe@tricities.net
South Central Virginia, USA
USDA Zone 7A, pH-5.4,  very sandy loam
185 to 205 frost free growing days per year
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