Re: I. pumila ?
- To: i*@rt66.com
- Subject: Re: I. pumila ?
- From: t*@lanl.gov (Tom Tadfor Little)
- Date: Fri, 13 Sep 1996 10:09:08 -0600
Lucinda writes
:When people talk about Iris pumila they mention so many different colors,
:I am confused. Is I. pumila *that* variable? Or are they talking about
:hybrids (= xI. pumila)? If hybrids, then why are they named this way
:instead of being called IB or BB or whatever is appropriate? In other
:words, what distinguishes this group of hybrids from the other groups of
:bearded iris hybrids?
Yes, I. pumila *is* that variable. The wild species includes forms that
are violet, white, yellow, blue, smokey...with or without contrasting
spot pattern or contrasting beard color. There are no plicatas and no
tangerine pinks, but otherwise the full range of bearded iris colors is
pretty well represented in this species.
Most dwarf and median irises (BBs and MTBs excepted) have some I. pumila
in their ancestry. SDBs are typically 1/2 pumila, IBs usually 1/4 pumila.
Some MDBs are pure pumila, but most are 3/4 or 1/2 pumila.
This species is almost single-handedly responsible for the
development of three popular classes of modern bearded irises. Pretty
impressive for a little squirt only 4 inches tall!
Cheers, Tom.
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Tom Tadfor Little tlittle@lanl.gov -or- telp@Rt66.com
technical writer/editor Los Alamos National Laboratory
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Telperion Productions http://www.rt66.com/~telp/
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