Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum

Specific Families and Genera => Iris => Topic started by: Gerhard Raschun on October 03, 2008, 07:12:29 PM

Title: Iris humilis ?
Post by: Gerhard Raschun on October 03, 2008, 07:12:29 PM
Today I have got a divisions of Iris sp., which have been collected in Georgia / Kaukasus at 2500m in a very dry area.

I looks for me like a Psammiris.Mayby it is I. humilis, I don`t know exactly the spreading.

Mayby somebody can help ?
Title: Re: Iris humilis ?
Post by: David Nicholson on October 03, 2008, 08:03:23 PM
Gerhard, in Brian Mathew's 'The Iris' he has Iris humilis as a synonym of I. pontica.

"Dwarf tuft forming species about 10cm in height when in flower but with over-topping grassy leaves 2-4cm wide and upto 20-40cm long. Solitary flowershave stems only 1-4cm long and about 5-6cm in diameter with nearly orbicular blades to the falls, separated from the winged claw by a definite constriction. Flower colour is violet with whitish or pale greenish-yellow, vilet-veined area on the haft and the centre of the blade of the falls, and the whole flower is finely darker-veined. Capsule produced at or justabove ground level. It occurs in dryish steppe country in central and north-eastern Roumania, western Ukraine and the Caucuses, possibly extending eastwards into Russian Central Asia although it's exact distribution does not seem to be well known"

I hope this helps.
Title: Re: Iris humilis ?
Post by: Gerhard Raschun on October 04, 2008, 07:19:01 PM
Dear David,

many thanks for your informations.I know the species, it is in northeast of Austria native too.Some plants in my collection outside in the garden.But I have never heard about violet flower colour ?! All plants bloom in yellow, I`ll show a pict......

Now I have got further information : Plants has been colectted near the border Georgia / Azerbaijan.
Title: Re: Iris humilis ?
Post by: David Nicholson on October 04, 2008, 07:47:25 PM
Gerhard, it may be that things have moved on since Brian Mathew wrote 'The Iris' (1981) have a look at

http://www.badbear.com/signa/signa.pl?Iris-humilis
Title: Re: Iris humilis ?
Post by: Gerhard Raschun on October 05, 2008, 07:01:56 PM
Gerhard, it may be that things have moved on since Brian Mathew wrote 'The Iris' (1981) have a look at

http://www.badbear.com/signa/signa.pl?Iris-humilis

Dear David,

there is written too: yellow colour with orange beard
Title: Re: Iris humilis ?
Post by: arillady on October 06, 2008, 01:11:03 AM
The BIS Species group book A Guide to Species Irises says:
I. humilis Georgi syns I arenaria Waldst. & Kit., I flavissima Pall., I. falvissima subsp. stolonifera, I pineticola
Extensive from Austria east through central Europe to south-east Russia, Siberia, Rumania and Mongolia.
Flower: buds sometimes greeen touched with bronze; 3-4cm diameter; falls to 3.5cm long, 1.2cm wide, bright yellow; oblong blade rather shorter than halft, which is veined browish purple, haft horizontal; beard orange, club-shaped hairs tipped brown; standards to 3cm long, about 0.3cm wide, oblong, unguiculate, yellow brown-purple edging on haft and shorter than falls; styles to 2.5cm, narrow, crests short, triangular, acutely tipped; stigma entire; filaments colourless, same length as anthers; anthers cream with green-black edging; pollen greenish.

Now please don't ask me to type out the rest of the description!! :)

It does say at the end that Mathews has not found the plant easy.

Iris humilis Beechy is also a synonym of I. douglasiana Herbert,
I. pontica Zapalowicz has I humilis Bieb., as a synonym
I unguiculars subsp,cretinsis has I humilis Sieber ex Baker [nom.in schaed.] as a synonym too
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