Heritage Irises 2011 Year in Review

HERITAGE IRISES YEAR IN REVIEW 2011 HERITAGE IRISES has been around in the blogosphere for over four years now and its hard to imagine my life without it. (sad huh). The bloom season for me in 2011 was erratic and many New Zealand growers reported a bloom season that came late by 2 weeks. At home, not only was it late, it all came at the same time for the Standard Dwarf Bearded and Intermediates, Dutch and English Irises and early flowering Tall Bearded. Then the strong Nor-westerly winds of up to 140 kph wasted the iris...

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Tall Bearded Heirloom Iris "EASTER BONNET"

Bred by Luke Norton and Alexander Maxwell both of Yakima Washington, "Easter Bonnet" is a no fuss heirloom iris I found in a paddock growing alongside an old dilapidated house that is still been used for storing hay, it was fighting for survival amongst the tall grass an indication of its will to survive. Sun fast flowers on tall branched stems, with high health glaucous green foliage. It's a sixty eight year old Iris, that inherited its classic form from both its classy parents, the pod parent bred by Dr P.A.Loomis' is the large...

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Tall Bearded Iris "LUNAR FIRE"

American Iris breeder Dave Hall was renown for his breeding of irises with tangerine beards. 20 years after he introduced his first flamingo pinks with tangerine beards  'Lunar Fire' was introduced. It's a beautiful flower, good substance and very full, the petals are just slightly laced at the edges, and of medium size when compared to more modern irises. The colour is best described as pale apricot with tangerine red beards. Height is 90 cm or 36 inches with average branching. Grows well at home with moderate increase...

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New Zealand Iris Grower "Mossburn Iris Gardens"

Mossburn Iris Gardens P.O.Box 96, Mossburn Phone/Fax 03 2486373 Email; laphams11@kinect.co.nz   After receiving the Lucy Delany Award in 2010, the Standard Dwarf  Bearded Iris 'Alamosa' featured on this years catalogue cover received a Highly Commended award at the New Zealand Iris society Convention 2011. This years catalogue introductions are HENHAM, KIM MAREE, KINKAID, and SAY SO, four new SDB registered by Noel Lapham.  The cold climate of the gardens, produce Medium Size rhizomes which...

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Tall Bearded Iris 'MILLENNIUM FALCON'

Catching the early morning sun, nearly said it all!!!! Visitors to the blog know I have a strong affection for Broken Colour Irises and 'MILLENNIUM FALCON' would have to take the cake, it is an extraordinary strong Iris that ticks all the boxes. Anyway I could wax lyrical regarding this Iris but, the master of reviews 'Perry Dyer' writing in his CONTEMPORARY VIEWS – 2002 already beat me to the punch and it is his compendious point of view that I have copied for you all below. 'The 9-1-1 AWARD is given to the New Iris that is,...

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