Hi Barbara,
You say you have narrowed it down to 4: Gulls Wing, Shakers
Prayer, Little Tricolor and Maggie Smith. You might want to e-mail
Greg McCullough at Iris City and ask him what he thinks would have the
best chance of survival from your original list. I think that one of
Bob Hollingworth's was said to do well in hotter climes. Was it
'Over in Gloryland'? I would give 'Kamayama' a try since it is an Iris
sanguinea - it presents as this because it has no branching like
'Caesar's Brother' which you said does well for you. We saw 'Caesar's
Brother' blooming in Memphis during the AIS convention there which was
the only Siberian that I saw doing well (in one garden, I think). It
wasn't a guest and didn't have a name tag but it was difficult to miss.
Since you read Dr. McEwen's 'The Siberian Iris', you do plant
deeply - I plant Siberians the same depth as I plant Japanese irises
because of our long and cold winters which is the opposite of your
climate! And mulching and watering is a must in hot climates. Maybe
some high (filtered shade) would also be beneficial. Some bearded iris
growers do this in the South and West of the U.S.
Up here in the cold mountains, our plants need all the sun they
can get to warm them up...just like the people that live here.
Good luck and welcome to our little list,
Ellen Gallagher
Good morning sib lovers: I am a new member who lives in East
Texas where we have hot wet summers (not true the past two summers,
well the hot part was). I have tried to grow sibs by ordering the
special from Ensata and from Clarence Mahon at different times. The
only ones that have survived are Caeser's Brother and a light speckled
blue that has long since lost its name tag but these have grown
spectacularly with little help. I have many huge clumps of each. I
crossed CB with some PCI last spring and got seeds, so will be
interested to see if any germinate. Any suggestions as to forgiving
Siberian iris. I understand there are quite a few different types of
sibs according to number of chromosomes and only one will cross with
PCI. I have the McEwen book on Siberians and have read at it. Any
help will be appreciated. I am planning to order a few in October from
Iris City Gardens as they were further south (that was my
rationalization in ordering frorm Mahon) and here is the list of
possibilities: Blue Rosette, Dark Circle, Ewen, Gulls, Wing, Ruffled
Velvet, Shaker's Prayer, Kamayama, Lady Lilac, Little Tricolor, Maggie
Smith, Wall Street Blues, and Chance Beauty narrowed down to Gulls
Wing, Shakers Prayer, Little Tricolor and Maggie Smith. Any thoughts
or other Southern sources?
Barbara Null
Tyler, TX
