We are not really sure of the species or variety of this Iris. It is a striking tall bulbous Iris that flowers now at the end of April through to early May. This is much earlier than the Dutch Iris (Iris x hollandica) that tend to flower in late May into June.
Flower colour on 27 April 2022
The flowers start out yellow and white but as they age the white parts seem to turn blue. The flowers are held on strong straight stems and average about 80cm in height. Again much taller and more sturdy than a Dutch Iris. It holds well as a cut flower.
The same clump one week later on 4 May 2022
My guess is that they are from the Xiphium section of bulbous iris but are unlikely to be the Spanish Iris (Iris xiphium) which is said to flower in June. Any ideas welcome!
Without an identification we have given it the name Mollie’s Iris as we were given a clump of the bulbs by our former neighbour Mollie Barber. Many of our plants have an association with a person kind enough to share their beautiful plants or perhaps a garden or location where we purchased something on our travels. Such memories bring an extra dimension to a garden as it grows and develops each year.
The Pyracantha bush just behind the house is in its full glory, covered in bright scarlet berries and looking wonderful in the autumn sunshine. At this time of year it attracts a wide range of birds, some come to feast on the berries each day, others like to simply sit and soak up the morning sunshine on a cold morning whilst for others it is a safe place to rest on route from A to B.
This week I have tried to capture some of the visitors to this one bush on camera. Here are six:
One: Redwing – an autumn and winter visitor to the garden enjoying a meal after flying in from Scandinavia
Five: Greenfinch – the numbers of greenfinchs have declined in recent years partly because of Trichomonosis, the name given to a disease caused by the protozoan parasite Trichomonas gallinae. It is nice to have them as an increasingly regular visitor to the garden now.
Six: Bullfinch – this stunning male bullfinch has been a regular visitor this week and has been joined towards the end of the week by two female bullfinches as well.
To complete the record I have also seen Goldfinches, Blue Tits, Great Tits and Robins on this Pyracantha during the week but have not managed to capture them on camera.
The Six on Saturday meme is hosted by The Propagator. Click on the link to see what other plant lovers are chatting about.
We are out in the garden ... 