My Grandmommy’s irises were “Plain Jane.” In her garden, she had many of these lovely plants, but they were only in four colors: white, yellow, and two shades of purple. While I always admired them (and have some of each in my own gardens), I had no clue that I would ever fall in love with the iris plant. That is, until I went to Argyle Acres. Many thanks to Pat, who commented to tell me about the place on a post about the fleur-de-lis last week.
I could be happy the rest of my life with a Cinnamon Girl.
If you are in my neck of the woods, grab your camera, some comfortable footwear, and a sunbonnet and head to Argyle Acres for their free garden tour. The gardens, located at 910 Pioneer Circle East in Argyle (Texas, of course), are open daily from noon to 5 p.m. It doesn’t cost a nickel to go look, but trust me — take your wallet! You’re bound to come away with some plants. Well, you won’t leave with them … you order them and they will be shipped to you in the fall at the proper transplanting time. Also, please note that if you love irises and want to buy some, you can order by telephone or mail from the catalog on the Argyle Acres website.
But, you really need to see them! And, smell them! Oh, I had no idea that the scent could be so heavenly.
The Cranapple Iris smelled like cinnamon!
Now, the Cinnamon Girl Iris and the Cranapple Iris are two that seem to be “red” in color, but Joe Spears, who owns Argyle Acres, told me that there is no “true red” in the iris world (although botanists are working to try to come up with one by manipulating the genes of the plants). I fell for both plants and many more!
It’s hard to tell from the picture, but Aaron’s Dream is light blue. I bought a whole selection of blues and purples.
I don't know what Aaron's Dream was, but don't wake him up.
Dwarf Iris, re-bloomers, bearded iris, plicata, variegata … you’ve gotta see them all! If you get a chance, sit and talk to Joe for a little while. I asked him, “How did you decide you wanted to grow irises for a living?” He said it just happened. He had some of the plants from his grandmother’s iris beds and used them to prevent erosion on the hill near his street. Then he decided to learn more and joined the Fort Worth Iris Society, which is having it’s 48th annual show at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden today (April 17th, 2010).
As Joe learned more about the irises, he began collecting different kinds, especially the antique plants. To be considered a “historic iris,” a plant has to have survived and multiplied for 30 years. The antique irises at Argyle Acres have been used at the Smithsonian (for the garden at the Museum of American History) and to replicate the feel of older gardens in some of the houses that Frank Lloyd Wright designed.
Some of the irises at the gardens are not for sale. I really regretted that these two were not. Joe said he grew them from seed and that both colors were in the same seed pod!
Not identical twins.
Yes, I fell in love with the iris plant. It wasn’t just because of the beauty and the variety, though. The main reason I’ve decided that I love irises is that they are easy to grow. Joe says that the fastest way to kill an iris is with too much water! You water the iris when you plant it, and again a few days after. Then, normal rainfall should be enough! Now, that’s my kind of plant.
One other thing I learned when I visited Argyle Acres was how to keep cut irises fresh. I’ve never been able to put them in a vase and have them last for more than a day. Joe’s sister, Donna, told me these tips:
- Cut the blooms in the morning.
- Choose a stem that has one bud about to open and a few others that are “showing color.”
- Put them in the vase of water and arrange them as you like them.
- The next day, remove any “spent” blooms.
- Most importantly, after removing those blooms lift the entire arrangement out of the water. Give the bouquet a slight “shake and twist.”
Donna promised me that if I did that, I could make a bouquet last for a week. I’ll have to try it next year, because my own irises are just about finished with their blooms for the year.
But, just you wait until next year! I’ll have irises like these from Argyle Acres blooming all over my yard.
But, will I remember the name by next year?
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{ 23 comments }
Simply beautiful – I almost felt I was there sharing the beauty with you. You made my day on a rainy Saturday morning…
.-= Desert Diva´s last blog ..Protected: Easter =-.
I wish you HAD been there with me! Your camera (and your experienced photographer’s eye) would have captured much better pics than I did.
Wow, thanks for posting these photos. We are big admirers of Iris and my husband’s family raised them for many years.
Mine are about to open. Well, five of them are. I planted about 50 plants last year and they don’t always produce flowers the first year after transplant. But there are five–2 are labeled, the other 3 are unknown. But my MIL will identify them. I’ll post photos.
.-= Anita´s last blog ..Ten Favorite Books =-.
Np, they don’t always produce the first year. I also found from the iris farm that after the iris blooms, it’s a “mama plant.” It doesn’t bloom again, but makes babies around it. After about three years, they told me to divide the cluster … and if the mother plant seems spent just throw it away (although sometimes it will make more offshoots). Looking forward to your photos … and now you know how to cut a bouquet (you probably already knew).
That last Iris looks like “Stepping Out”.
I don’t think it’s that one, Anita. I wrote down the names of the ones I ordered (and I did order this one), but Stepping Out is not on the list. Duh!
You have inspired me to get some irises from my dad that were my Mama’s and try to plant them in my yard. I’m not very good with plants but these might do the trick. I have a side bed that needs some color!
.-= Elizabeth´s last blog ..My blog is carbon neutral =-.
And, the best thing about them is NO WATERING! Yippee. I’m all into that. Look at the catalog for Argyle Acres, and I bet you find some that thrill you.
I fell in love with a blue iris last year too: Blue Tide. Seven rhizomes for five dollars at that infernal Wally World.
http://fairweatherlewis.blogstream.com/v1/pid/392461.html#TP
They haven’t bloomed yet this year, and may be delayed even longer because of a twelve-day arctic freeze we had back in January.
.-= Fairweather´s last blog ..The Cussin’ Cover =-.
I fell in love with a blue iris last year: Blue Tide.
http://fairweatherlewis.blogstream.com/v1/pid/392461.html#TP
They haven’t bloomed as yet, and will probably be a bit late thanks to a twelve-day stretch of arctic cold we had here back in January. But they are pretty.
.-= Fairweather´s last blog ..The Cussin’ Cover =-.
Oh, Fair! The Blue Tide is lovely! I may have to see if Argyle Acres has them. Yes, the irises are a little late in Texas, too, because of our late snowfall. Even at that, mine are pretty much done for the season.
Three sayings I have about flowers:
1 A woman can never have too many flowers or too many sweaters.
2 Flowers brighten a gray day; heck, flowers brighten every day.
3 It’s okay to be late, just bring flowers.
I trim stems and change the water daily, to get the most life out of them. Without flowers, there’s no reason to give vases but – absent a vase – a jelly glass or mayonnaise jar is sufficient for any bouquet. As an apartment dweller, I have to get my floral fixes in the cut variety, but the good news is that they are available on every other street corner in NYC. Or on my laptop; check this out: http://www.procreo.jp/labo/flower_garden.swf. Click your mouse on the black area, click & drag, or click & hold. Brightens any moment at the tube & only takes a second. I hope this brings a smile to your weekend.
I love that link! I must show that to my nieces … they will get a kick out of it! You did indeed bring a smile to my weekend.
Wow, those irises are really beautiful ! I didn’t know irises smelled something. Having no garden, I like sturdy geraniums myself from the flowering ones to the scented ones (cinnamon, apple, rose, citrus). But the irises you photographed are incredible.
.-= Terry Elisabeth´s last blog ..Booking through Thursday : Which End ? =-.
They told me that the fragrance is in the ones that are blue or purple … but cranapple is red (ok, I’m not an artist, so there is probably some blue in it). Geraniums are fun, too! I love the cinnamon ones. I never had very good luck with them, though. They always got “leggy” on me.
I love web gardening.
My mother was an Iris fancier.
http://cbhopibluecornexperiment.blogspot.com/2010/04/david-sadler.html
.-= Colorado Bob´s last blog ..Planting the 3 Sisters =-.
I like your garden monument, Bob! You say your momma liked iris, but do you have any of hers? The ones I’ve got that were my grandmother’s probably qualify as “historic” by now.
Those pictures are incredibly beautiful. They will keep you company for years.
.-= Jamie´s last blog ..Places In The Rear View Mirror =-.
Thanks, Jamie. They will keep me company if I remember to come look at them.
Hopefully they will be looking like that in my garden in a few years.
Hey Shelly, these are so beautiful! I am so happy you fell in love with Irises. I have always been fond of them….but it’s too hot where we live….wah…xxoo K
I thought about you the whole time I was there! I remember years ago when you told me about an iris farm here in Denton where you had gotten a lot of bulbs. Was that the old Burgess place?
Such beautiful flowers, I wish I lived close enough to go see them with you.
.-= Robin from Israel´s last blog ..Following in the footsteps of John the Baptist =-.
You’ve got plenty of beautiful flowers in YOUR neck of the woods, from the looks of the lovely photos you post. But, if you trained your camera on my irises there would be better pictures
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