Iris for Garden Splendor

En masse or as a single clump, bearded iris can be depended upon for a brilliant late May and June performance. Here are three ways to use them effectively.

Landscape Idea #1

A butterfly garden of tall bearded iris displays its colorful wings in late May. Its vivid color can be enjoyed for at least two weeks, distantly from a terrace or more intimately by descending the steps and walking the stepping stone path that bisects the garden.

The gentle slope insures surface water drainage. so necessary to the well being of the plants. And it does something more: it enables you to look back at the garden from the lower lawn and see the iris in two distinct tiers of color, one above the other. Deep and pale-blue iris combined with white varieties might be used in the two beds while the another two beds might be devoted to a concentration of yellows in varying intensity. During the summer, while the plants are storing energy for a color display the following year, the beds provide an interesting pattern, and the iris foliage lends textural contrast to the smooth open lawn.

Landscape Idea #2

There is always space for iris, and to prove the point a small clump nestles happily along the foundation of a house. For contrast in form, a sedum could be used, and for color later in the summer, daylilies could complete the picture. A brick edging which is kept flush with the lawn so that a weed eater can make quick work of trimming things up.

Landscape Idea #3

For a low-maintenance border, weave great strips of bearded iris between clumps of peonies and rhododendrons. Edge the border with forget-me-nots (biennials) and follow them with petunias. Place rhododendrons in a broken line behind the flowers and use a fence or trellis weighted with roses for a continuous background. With a combination of iris and other flowers you can enjoy a colorful border from spring to fall. This border would be especially nice to look at from a picture window. Annual flowers may be used as fillers the first year while iris and other plants are becoming established.

Related Articles Of Interest:

• How To Use Iris in the Landscape
• Iris Wonderful for Landscape Color
• Manure on Iris
• Iris Through the Seasons