Spring Blooming Perennials – Lip Smacking Irises

Spring Blooming Perennials, Draped In Medieval Colors

I love Irises. These sun loving, spring blooming perennials speak of history, gallantry and tapestries with their drooping falls, luxuriant colors and markings.There are six different types of these spring blooming perennials in the area at the moment and I have four of them in my little garden. I did have miniature Dutch Irises in early spring, the first sun loving perennials to show their heads on short, grassy stems. I should have planted a whole lot more in the pot because they looked a little forlorn in their separate spots. They should have been more clumpy. They were very sweet thought, with purple petals decorated with yellow and white markings like coats of arms.

Dutch Irises

Just fading are the Dutch Irises, which have put on a wonderful show for me. Mine are yellow and white and blue with yellow and were quite dramatic in my rather empty bed as spring got into its stride. Mine are fading but my neighbor’s have just started flowering so obviously you can stagger their planting times to get more out of them. I’ll try that next time.

Along the roadside, Flag Irises are adding a blast of yellow to the grassy banks. These tall spring bloomers grow in great clumps on long, sturdy stems and are able to look after themselves.

Pacific Coast Hybrid Irises

You know I love the native Douglas Irises that have been cheering up the landscape for weeks now with their pale blue and dark blue flowers. But now is the time for the Pacific Coast Hybrid to come into flower and I’m drooling over the rich color combinations they provide. Mostly Natives Nursery gets them in from the grower and no one knows what colors will appear. All you can be sure of is that they will be dazzling. I want to drape myself in their medieval colors and each flower that unfurls is my favorite.

Louisiana Irises are starting to bloom in bogs and in ponds. They have such pretty colors and always herald late spring when heaps of flowers suddenly appear out of the lanky foliage. I grew lots of them in the shallows of my pond in Zimbabwe but don’t have room for a pond here. I suspect, however, that they would still grow if you planted them in an ordinary flower bed, as long as you gave them enough water and more room than I can provide.

 German or Bearded Irises

Far more drought resistant are German Irises which don’t like to be watered too often and prefer sandy soils to boggy conditions. Last fall I bought an old bath to use as a raised bed and my husband prettied it up for me. Then I planted some bare rooted German Iris rhizomes in it. By late winter they didn’t look at all happy and I feared the worst for them.

Never fear, however, for these gopher resistant plants have woken up and are now flourishing. My first one waited until I was away before it unfurled its most exquisite deep maroon petals. My friend kindly took a photo of it and sent it to me so that I could adore it from afar.

When I got home a couple of days later, a couple more varieties had joined the party, including this lasciviously regal purple and yellow one. My husband was quite startled when he first saw my German Irises, they are so big and so bold!

I’m astounded by the colors offered by these spring blooming perennials. The other day I saw a pale pink one in someone’s garden. Also tawdry in its way, it is far more genteel than those in my voluptuous collection. I fell in love with it on sight and am determined to find something similar. I’ll have to plant it away from the others so it isn’t overwhelmed by those brazen beauties!

Happy gardening and please don’t forget your sunscreen. There’s so much skin cancer about, you must protect your skin.

By the way, here is a link to a list of gopher resistant plants: http://www.groundcoversandgardening.com/gopher resistant plants.

If you want to buy plants that deer probably won’t eat, look here.

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