Irises: Japanese Iris patch doing it's thing., 1 by drdon

drdon wrote:
I love this time of year when the Japanese Iris come into bloom. My only issue with these is that I don't know which variety they are. I have only read where all Japanese Iris started out as I. ensata (formerly I. kaempferi). How does one know what each of these two are?

Here's a pic of the patch. It is under the shade of a California Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia). I planted them here two years ago because our summers are so hot and dry that I thought they would cook. They grow nicely and appreciate the extra humidity in the afternoon shade-our summers are hot, hot, hot and very dry.

I would like to know if anyone in this forum can help me with keying these variations.