This iris is apparently taller than Tom Cruise, and much taller than a Hobbit. Grows 1.4 metres 55" at home, "Harbor Blue" sure packs a punch at the back of the border. It is the tall and imposing child of ‘Jane Phillips,’blooms are a clear and attractive medium self blue, smooth in finish and beautifully formed, consistently open properly and fully on strong tall and well branched stems. Very vigorous growth.
Stevens Bros. Bastia Hill, Wanganui, New Zealand, IRISES 1958-59Harbor Blue (Schreiner, USA)
True beauty in an Iris demands that if the bloom is unusually large all the other virtues of the flower must also be increased. This is the reason why so very few extra large irises are really beautiful, in fact Harbor Blue is the only exceptionally large Iris we personally rate very high. But here we have a player whose great sizes balanced by very broad vigorous foliage, very tall, stout, and well Branch stems and in the flowers, by very broad and fluted petals, extra good substance, and intense colour. Winner of the Romney Towndrow Memorial for the Iris with the finest form in England in 1955, this is the flower we have illustrated on our cover. Blue irises are notoriously difficult to photograph and the camera has failed here to bring to life the pellucid quality of the blue colour, which is soft, yet clean and intense. Award of Merit, A.I.S. 1957. 4ft.
Schreiner's Iris Lovers Catalog,1954.HARBOR BLUE Like the pellucid sapphire of a Bermuda harbor at sunset when the wind is stilled is this magnificent derivative of three famous inbred blues: Chivalry, Distance and Jane Phillips. We have raised innumerable blue seedlings from the finest possible blood lines but never before were greeted with such progress as this seedling reveals. Hybrid vigor gives it bamboo-type stems and flawless branching plus a leatheriness of substance that make it practically wind and weather proof. The soul of the flower lover is perennially hungry for soul-satisfying blues and here is one which in massive size, lavish form, glossy texture, richness and exquisiteness of hue, plus freedom form lavender really lifts the heart. A trans-mundane beauty that is truly inspiring in the clump. How can your garden be without it?
Cooleys Gardens Catalog, Silverton, Oregon IRIS FOR ‘57Harbor Blue (Schreiner, 1954) this new blue, of startling size, has been winning fame both in this country and abroad. The great flowers are born on husky stalks reaching almost 4 feet and they hold up in all kinds of weather. Honourable Mention A.I.S 1955
BIS Yearbook 1955Iris Show held on 8th and 9th June 1955, Royal Horticultural Society New Hall, Grey Coat Street, Westminster.
The Josephine Romney Towndrow Trophy for, "The iris of best form of the year" was awarded to HARBOR BLUE, raised by Robert Schreiner (USA) and exhibited by H.C. Fletcher.
AIS Checklist 1959
'Harbor Blue' (R. Schreiner, R. 1954) TB, 40" (102 cm), M-L. Self, light blue. 'Jane Phillips' x 'Quicksilver'. Schreiner 1954. HM 1955; AM 1957; AM, RHS, 1958.
As always clicking on the above images will take you to the larger, higher resolution version.
Photo credit and copyright Iris Hunter.
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