New Zealand Tall Bearded Iris "POLYNESIA "

Another delightful Iris from the Late Jean Stevens. This photo was taken at the very fine gardens of the President of the Masterton Horticultural Society, Colin McCarthy.


STEVENS BROS CATALOGUE
Novelties 1944-45
POLYNESIA
This new iris of our own raising is a delightful shade of golden bronze,quite a new colour in irises.It is a pure self,and both standards and falls are nicely frilled.The flowers are of a classic form and are carried on well branched stems. 3 feet in height. 21/-

The Iris Year Book 1958 Published by the Iris Society (BIS)
WHERE ARE THE FRIENDS OF YESTERYEAR by W.Brindley page 128
POLYNESIA (Stevens 1944); This was short with small flowers on a plant only acquired last March.On arrival it was so dehydrated that I did not expect it to bloom (A remark also applying to several other plants acquired at the same time) The standards were rather open,falls flaring and the colour a pleasing light tan shading to yellow at the shoulders.There is also a short light-blue vertical line as a continuation of the yellow beard

POLYNESIAThe Iris Year Book 1951 Published by the Iris Society (BIS)
ON WITH THE SHOW by H.Senior Fothergill Page 27
Mr Lipscombe showed a good collection of tall spikes with a lot of blooms out on each: One spike of DEREK MEYER ( Meyer 1939) was 54 inches high, POLYNESIA (Stevens 1944) which is a brighter colour than JEAN CAYEUX was here next to a fine spike of the old red CHRISTABEL (Lapham 1936)




From THE TALL BEARDED IRISES by Nicholas Moore Coleridge 1956 page 65
The first brown iris that really was brown was Jean Cayeux...as such it was a landmark in its time...Many breeders have introduced irises of a similar colour and the New Zealand Breeder,Mrs Stevens in POLYNESIA (1944) has one that is remarkably like it except the colour is lighter a more golden coffee-au-lait, and the flower is more waved and slightly ruffled

Jean Stevens Stud book entry

POLYNESIA
From Jean Stevens original Stud book spanning the years 1925-1944
1938 CROSSES
Seedling #2/020 POLYNESIA
020=Golden Hind X 2/L36 L36 is the 1935 cross INSPIRATION X INDIAN CHIEF

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