Siberian Season in Newfoundland

Wel the rest of you may have your Siberians a part of the past, but here in the north they are just peaking. here are a few from my collection: Super Ego.

Silver Edge

Dark Desire, backed by Salix candida

Sparkling Rose

Dear Delight

Shirley Pope

Butter and Sugar

Great pics, Todd! Love sibs the best. I have a few reblooming-sibtosa duchess, reprise (big rebloom), china spring, bellissima started late so it's peaking now. I always go into a slight emotional slump when they end (and I have to cut down all those darn seedpods for days) but my JIs started yesterday to lift me up (and many new DLs) so that helps. Also helps to see your pics, Todd, so keep 'em coming!

Todd-very nice iris pics. The only ones I can successfully grow are the LA iris--and they have been history here since the end of March. So very nice to get to look at yours!

Beautiful! Thanks so much for posting your pics.

Laura

A few more taken today...Dance Ballerina Dance

Navy Brass

Snow Queen

and some non-siberians..I. setosa 'Alba'

Iris sintensii

Iris versicolor 'Kermesina'

Iris virginica 'Dottie's Double'

Iris delavayi

Iris bulleyana

Cool Spring

Wonderful collection, Todd. Can you tell me more about I. sintensii?

All beauties! SI's are so easy to grow, don't you agree?

Sintenisii is related to I. graminea.....both are dwarfs among the spuria iris. I grew this one from seed many years ago but this is the first year its flowered. It has two stems, each with two flowers. The plant is getting big now so I am hoping I will get more flowers next year. It is native to Bulgaria where it grows on limestone substrates in evenly moist soil.

Great info, Todd. Do you have a source for seeds? I grow graminea easily here and I have two spurias but neither bloomed this year. One I had in a pot for 12 years and it never bloomed so I don't know what it is. Someone clued me in to plant it in the ground last year-I didn't think we grew spurias here. The second one (a yellow), I bought at the iris auction I go to annually. What spurias are successful there?

I once tried a yellow tenax here but it died in one season.

I got the seeds from a bot garden in France many years ago. Only one germinated. The only spuria types that seem to survive here is graminea (easy and reliable) and sintenisii (apparently shy)

Well if either of these bloom, I'd love to send some to you, Todd. If you have the room. They have large root systems and look big and husky.

BTW, my kermesina looks different-longer falls. Maybe mine were mislabeled-bought it locally. Did you grow it from seed. I like yours better.

Mine came from The Plant Farm in British Columbia (my main source for Iris)

Again, beautiful, all of them. But especially the species. Sadly, as with lilies, almost no one grows the many species in the genus around here.

Now about the other really cool plant in your pics: Salix candida. Hve you any experience with it in dry to mesic soils? I recently was given a plant and am quite excited about it.

Rick

In Newfoundland, S. candida grows in wet sites mostly but I have seen it in gravels but there always seemed to be some moisture present. I have no idea if it will survive drought. Silvery leaves would suggest it can!

Thanks Todd. So many plants growing in the wild find their niches there, but that doesn't always mean they require that situation. So I will probably be testing it out, once I propagate a few extra plants. I am guessing the wooliness may have more to do with adaptation to cold temps, rather than heat/drought. My plant came from Baffin Island!

Rick

I like the species irises too, *hello everyone!*, Todd you do have some nice ones there, many I had thought of getting but I just can't do everything at once, as hard as I may try!

I have I. versicolor Kermesina too, I got some seed off my neighbours plant in his pond. I have a couple in the water/ edge, some I put in the soil but it dries too much and they haven't done very well, but the water ones have grown large. They turned out slightly different colours, his is more blue, I got several variations, including the colour of both above. Mine are a narrower petal though.

Rick, I didn't realize S. candida grew that far north!

Wallaby1, technically, if you grew the plant from seed, then it is no longer the cultivar 'Kermesina'...that cultivar is only true from division. You have your own unique cultivar!

Todd, as always, beautiful pics and fascinating thread! So interesting to see your sibs, but also your non-sibs (about which I am not too familiar)...Are yours planted in your rock garden?

Like Boojum, I am too soon nostalgic for our siberian season here, so I am especially happy to see your photos.

Enjoy your gardening this weekend! t.

Todd, now you got me thinking. My friend collected quite a bit of stuff, and gave me a bunch. He told me all the stuff came from Baffin or Cambridge(right next to Baffin). But . . . it does seem a little strange for candida way up there. Everything else is little, tight, alpine-like buns. I will have to ask him specifically about that willow.

Rick