I’m still pretty “green” when it comes to bearded irises. They grow everywhere in this city, and I seem to be one of the few that has problems getting them to bloom. I’ve had three irises growing in one of my flowerbeds since 2007, but only one of them blooms regularly. That would be ‘Armageddon’:
In my defense, bearded irises bloom right about the time my annuals are ready to come up from the basement and greet the world. For about two weeks until my little plants are safely in the ground, I spend most of my time watering them, fertilizing them and moving them in and out of the hot sun. A spaceship could land in my yard and start hauling away the squirrels during that time and I’d be oblivious.
This year is the first year that ‘Savannah Sunset’ has decided to bloom. Unfortunately when I was photographing one of the flowers, I noticed an entire stalk lying on the ground. I can’t tell if it got stepped on, or if the damage was caused by iris borers—another part of the iris world that I don’t know much about. That particular flowerbed screens an ugly power pole, and I tend to let the plants get a little wild and woolly back there so it’s difficult to do any good CSI.
‘Savannah Sunset’ is fetching coppery-orange color:
The stalks reach 38 inches tall and are loaded with eye-catching blooms that stand out from a distance. ‘Savannah Sunset’ is hardy in Zones 3-9.
