Put a Little Van Gogh in Your Garden
REMEMBER THOSE FLOWERS YOUR GRANDMA HAD IN HER GARDEN? THE ONES SHE CALLED FLAGS?
Design Resources
Growing Iris is a huge trend in gardening for 2025. Iris thrives in many kinds of conditions, and comes in bright to pastel colors. Shades of purples, deep blues, and yellow are just a few, and Iris can look both traditional and contemporary.
Beardless irises don’t have the beard but have bright color at the throat of the flower. The most widely grown of this type are Siberian and Japanese Iris, which are tolerant of a wide are just a few, and Iris can look both traditional and contemporary.
A hardy perennial that can tolerate partial shade as well as sun, these stunning plants bloom in late spring into early summer and are a great bridge between the blooming seasons.
A favorite subject for artists Vincent van Gogh, Georgia O'Keeffe, and others, Iris will last for years in your garden, and it multiplies, so when it comes time to divide it, you can share with your friends. I have Iris that was given to me by a friend, who got the original from her mother’s garden, and now I have passed some on to at least two other generations of gardeners. There are two groups of irises, bearded and beardless. Bearded irises are the most popular. Typically, they have big wide foliage and dramatic leaves. Newer varieties have more elaborate f lowers and can also have more ruffles, branches, and blooms. You can easily tell a bearded iris from another type by looking at the flower. Bearded Iris seems to have a “beard” growing down the leaf. The beard comes in several colors, red and yellow are two of them. You can use these irises to make a statement. Growing to 27 inches high, tall irises make a lovely back-of-the border display. You could also create a naturalized clump to stand alone at a building corner, or near a mailbox. Tall irises are great additions to a low-lying garden, adding height and long-lasting interest.
Beardless irises don’t have the beard but have bright color at the throat of the flower. The most widely grown of this type are Siberian and Japanese Iris, which are tolerant of a wide variety of climates and soils. They work well on patios, under trees, or in containers. Japanese Iris is also a favorite water plant grown in containers in pond shallows.
A number of years ago, the “Space Age” Iris was introduced. These varieties are known for how their beard develops. It develops like an extra leaf, and it takes the shape of spoons or horns. One variety has pink standards and blue falls, and the creation of a green flower is in the works.
New Iris varieties include, About Town: a vigorous variety with bicolor flowers, ruffled red-violet falls, and bright orange beards; Cafe Bleu: a lightly fragrant iris with light blue standards and falls that are just a shade darker; and Friendly Advice: a flower that blends tones of pink, lavender, lilac, and white.
If you are looking for a classic that has and will continue to stand the test of time, plant some irises in your garden this season. Perhaps you will be inspired just as Georgia O’Keeffe was.
Jackie can be seen every Saturday on WGRZ-TV, Channel 2, Buffalo on Daybreak Saturday.
To see her books and artwork visit www.jackiealbarella.com.