Photo by Mark
McDonough
Standing 9" tall (22.5 cm) and looking
like a chubby, miniature corn plant,
the clear caerulean blue flowers of Iris aucheri are very
attractive and
have a faint sweet
scent. Photographed on April 14th, 2002, this is
the first of the Juno irises to open in my garden.
Native to Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq, growing on rocky hills and
mountainsides. It seems easy enough to cultivate in a raised bed,
shown here in a mounded foundation planting of small shrubs inter-planted
with bulbs. For the Juno irises, I dig holes 18" deep x 16"
wide, and
fill them with coarse sand and a trifle of humus. The Juno iris
species
seem to like the treatment, and easily survive the normal summer rain
and irrigation despite their need for a dry summer dormancy. Those
species tried thus far have proven to be completely winter hardy.
To see two close-ups of the intricately marked
flowers of Iris aucheri, click
on this link.
Gallery of Juno Iris, April 2002
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