Opinion needed please.

I've been trying to ID some of my iris through PlantFiles, and I came across Caesar's Brother which looks exactly like my iris. I would like to know what you think. Also, if I get several opinions that an iris is a certain name, when is it, or is it ever O.K to give the unnamed iris that name. Who do you have to ask to verify? I am new to all this, but I do know that gardeners take the names very seriously and I don't know what the rules are. thankyou, Andrea

http://davesgarden.com/pf/showimage/41984/

I don't grow siberians, so I can't really say. But, it does seem to resemble it.

* Iris etiquette * :

As for giving an unknown iris a ("pretty sure it's _") certain name..........it is NOT really recommended. (Even though it may look "exactly" like the one in the pictures.)

What IS recommended is to now acquire that specific "named" iris from a reputable source and grow it side by side with the one you now have. IF and THEN it matches identically in every way ......... at that point in time you can put a name to it and trade it/sell it as THAT "named" iris.

*** Before then (if you wish to trade or sell it) be sure the other person knows - - - that you are pretty sure it's "____" but you can't verify or be certain of it's real name. (It's in all fairness to other iris grower.)

Some iris gardeners will not follow what is recommended (incorrectly putting a "real" name to an iris) and when the receiver person on the other end sees it in bloom they are disappointed - - expecting one certain "named variety" but getting something else. At that point those people can't show it in an iris show, can't sell it as that name, etc.

NOTE: However, if the other person on the receiving end does not care what the REAL name is - - then it's perfectly alright to sell or trade the irises with this understanding between the two people.

~Margie

I have read speculation that Caesar's Brother is the most frequently misidentified iris. In fact, one theory is that there are so many CB imposters both in the commercial market and in private gardens around the world that it may be impossible to determine which is the accurate CB, if, in fact, it still exists at all. It seems that everyone with an unknown purple Sib wants to call it CB.

Caesar's Brother is the LAST name I would ever assign to an unknown iris under those circumstances, since you have no way of confirming the accurate identity of whichever CB version you're trying to compare it to.

Laurie

O.K that's great! I didn't know how to go about doing that. I have 2 of them that people are sure of but I didn't know what I had to do to kind of make it "official". Everyone's experience has been pointing me in the right directions. Is it all right to periodicly post here for ID's or is there an "iris etiquette" :) that I should follow also? I really appreciate your help with this. I was afraid to post and threw caution in the wind and did it anyways (a few times). I think I have 4 or 5 more left to ID. Thank You, Andrea

oh I just crossposted with you. thankyou for the information. my Iris looks like it but seems to grow shorter. I wonder if there is another. any suggestions?

There's nothing wrong with posting pics of unknown irises as long as you understand that it is usually impossible to confirm an identity through photos alone. With nearly 60,000 registered irises on the books, there are a very rare few that are so unique that they can be readily identified. Most irises have dozens, perhaps even hundreds, of lookalikes. The best you can do through photos is to develop a list of possible matches and then, as Margie suggested, acquire as many of them as possible from accurate sources to grow side by side with your unknown in your own garden. It can take years to get them all blooming at the same time so that you can make point by point comparisons of all plant aspects: flowers, foliage, height, bloom period, stalks, bud count, vigor, etc., etc. You may find two flowers that look identical but one blooms early and the other late. Not a match. You may find two identical flowers but one has PBF and the other doesn't. Not a match. You might find two identical flowers but one has 11 buds per stalk and the other has 2. Not a match.

You can learn a great deal more about the usually lengthy process of identifying unknowns by reading these two articles:

http://www.worldiris.com/public_html/Frame_pages/ID.html
http://www.worldiris.com/public_html/Identification/Photo_ID1.html

Laurie

Andrea,
Oh my Yes.............please post your "unknowns" and continue to ask for ID's. We all can help to point you in the right direction. Then you can take it to the next level - to grow and compare with a real "named" variety from a reliable source.

Another reason not to rely on photos is because everyone's camera and computer monitor colors are not created equal/ not created the same. What may look like one color on your monitor may turn out to be a different hue of color in "real life".

Press on Andrea, your dedication WILL pay off. :-)
smiles,
~Margie

you know this thread just explained just how much work it might be to properly ID an iris. I didn't know how extensive that could be. I'm sure there are alot of new people that are new like me that didn't think to ask that question and might have taken the generocity of all your knowledge here and assumed that they know had a "named" iris. I just happened to be lurking for the past 2 years and reading alot of posts from all over and trying to gain some knowledge of gardening and thats why I asked. Maybe we could post that in a sticky at the top about ID etiquette so that the beginner's like me will know. Thankyou for all your help. I guess I can still have a few unnamed but keep good records for all my new ones coming in :) Andrea