Bristly Iris

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Bristly iris owes its name to its appearance: in the flowers of this iris, the three upper petals over time turned into three small bristles, which are very problematic to notice with the naked eye. This iris was first discovered in Eastern Siberia. In addition to such bristles, these irises are also distinguished by a very special structure of the seed pods: and when rocking, this box makes a sound very similar to the sound of an ordinary baby rattle.

The plant itself is just that because of the natural conditions in which it originally had to develop. The seed pod itself is arranged in such a way that it allows the seeds to survive the frosts, which very often occur during the growing season of this plant in the Far North. The bristle iris capsule provides reliable thermal insulation. The seeds have time to ripen perfectly, and then they fall into the water. Water is able to spread these seeds even over very large areas.

In its distribution, bristly iris reaches even the Arctic Ocean. It is noteworthy that for a long time this plant could be found even in North America. Due to its decorative properties, this plant is quite widely used: for example, in Magadan, city streets are decorated in this way.

Description

This plant has xiphoid leaves, at the base they are painted in reddish-purple tones. The peduncle of the plant is branched, inside it will be dense, and its height can reach seventy-five centimeters. The flowers of iris bristly are colored in violet tones, in the perianth the outer lobes are rather large, while the inner ones are reduced to very short setae, as noted above. Blossoming of bristly iris occurs in late May-early June. It should be noted that this culture is distinguished by its exceptional resistance to frost. In culture, bristly iris has been known since the nineteenth century.

So, this plant from the Iris family should be called a coastal or marsh plant. As for the light regime, the bristly iris is distinguished by a special love of the sun. However, the plant will need partial shade. Bristle iris is very fond of soils with a high degree of fertility, here this plant just develops well.

The height of this perennial plant in some cases, together with the peduncles, can even reach one meter. It should be noted that the plant can be characterized as very fast growing. The rhizome will be quite thin, but highly branched. Up to two to five flowers can be formed on a peduncle.

Not only flowers of bristly iris are considered decorative, but also its leaves. These leaves will be soft and wide, their color is dark green, these leaves are slightly pointed, and in length they can even grow up to eighty centimeters. This amazing plant is especially beautiful during its flowering period, which begins in July and will last until the end of this month. The color scheme of this plant will be blue and purple shades.

So, wet and swampy shores are suitable for planting. As for the soil, peaty and moist fertile soils are permissible, which, among other things, will also be slightly acidic. As already mentioned, this culture is very resistant to frost, so no additional shelter is required for the winter period. However, in the fall, the plant should be pruned at a height of about ten centimeters.

Reproduction of iris bristly occurs both by seeds and by dividing the bush. When choosing the second method of reproduction, the rhizomes should not be overdried, and their storage and transportation should be carried out in moist peat.