Truly a Bearded Iris by any other name is still a Bearded Iris

I always think of Georgia O'Keefe when I gaze into my Bearded Irises. Who doesn't ? Of course I also think of the Iris from Disney's Alice in Wonderland. She holds up her monocle and says " Aha! Just as I suspected! She's nothing but a common mobile vulgarism...more specifically a weed."

I want to state my firm opinion about the name of this plant. Ewww. In our society cultural mores would require her to shave. It is obvious why the name came about but I feel compelled to find a more fitting feminine way to address this plant.  With all the cryptic words in botany I am surprised, that this yellow tuft, meant to attract pollinators, would be so plainly called a beard. The botanist agreed with the "common name" or visa-versa and here we have it. Bearded Iris.
The other parts of the Iris have splendid names. The falls, the standards, the stigmatic lip. If an Iris is of one color it is called a Self. I could on and on about how I love that- "the self".To find the answer I knew I had to consult the Bible of Herbaceous Perennial Plants written by Allan M. Armitage to find the scientific name for the Beard. This is one the most beautiful tales behind a flowers name have I have encountered. Iris was a Greek Goddess. She was a messenger for the Goddess Juno, the Goddess of marriage. It was said that 

"Iris walked between heaven and earth over a bridge made by a rainbow. Legend says that wherever she walked, her footprints bore flowers with as many colors as the rainbow."

It is when Armitage is describing his method of teaching this genus that I find the alternative name for the Bearded Iris. He divides the flowers into those with a beard, those with a crest, and those with neither a beard or a crest. The Irises without beards are called Pogon Irises. Eureka. 

Here is the catch. 

The word Pogon means Beard in Greek. 

 I do not normally label my plants but maybe while they are in bloom I will. The label should read  

" If you please. We prefer the title Pogon Iris."

Where did you come from ? uplanned Spring vignettes

These first photos are from the South East Side of my house. In this photo nothing obvious is in bloom. It is wild. The real floozies hang out here. Mint, White bearded Irises, and what I call 1950's Sedum. It is debauchery and I secretly love these plants. I let them do what ever they want. Shhh. 

     This Shasta Daisy and Lily are in a firm 

embrace. They are saying "You can't tear us apart !"

 and who would?


I really tried to capture what my eye sees in this combination. It is like my grapes are wearing a tutu. You can barely make out how the Aquilegia encircles the rough, woody base of the grape vines.

                                                                                                             

I never thought you would bloom, Madame Rouge. This is a "Mother's Day" cast off I found it in a grocery cart for 1.50. It was still wrapped in hot pink tin foil. 

Okay forget it Myosotis sylvatica. This is not your crowd. Of the woods I am sure. Although, it does look comfortable next to that fluffy, tiny, patch of Spirea. Be Blessed. 

These photos are from a more well behaved bed in the front my house. I wanted to get a picture of this dandelion before I dug it up. I never thought of adding yellow to this composition. 

I like it. 

Cherry Trees-it must of been cold there in my shadow

 The color, texture, and movement in this painting by Edgar Degas "The Four Dancers" reminds me of Spring.  One may think of a Magnolia or Cherry tree when they hear of trees in bloom. These trees are well known for their showy flowers an that is often why we choose them for our landscape. 

When I started to study woody plants in 2007 I began to look at plant flowers in new detail. I began to notice the inconspicuous flowers on other Spring trees. They are so small, intimate, and complex. The fact that they are withdrawn makes me them even more attractive to me. Amongst the amazing shows of other flowering trees they often go unnoticed.

Acer s.

  I notice the Maples early. The grey and blak forest starts to blush red. The buds on the trees in my yard look like retro, red, clip-on ear rings. These are Acer saccharinum.  All those buds, bloom and then fruit.  Those are a lot of helicopters. Otherwise know as chimera. The winged fruit. 

Salix Alba

When I see a Weeping Willow in Spring I anxiously describe it's beauty to whoever is with me. I am frantically trying to get them to see what I see and share in the experience.  The branches look like the translucent, plastic, beaded necklaces. The green-yellow ones you buy at the dollar store that come with all the jewelry a little girl could ever need and a tiara. 

Cercis canadensis 

The Red Buds come next. I fell in love with this native plant while driving through the blue ridge in the Spring.  They covered the light green slopes of the mountain sides in an early morning fog. Their color is a unique lilac. I think it looks like cherry sherbet tastes. 

Of course I enjoy all the blooms ! When I stand under my cherry tree I get weak in the knees. I dream of having a Southern Magnolia outside my bedroom window. 

It is a religious experience to stand in a breeze of cherry petals. 

 I took this photo at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. last year.