Iris filifolia
| Iris filifolia | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 2' |
| Blooms: | Early Summer |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Iris filifolia
Propagation: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Stored seed should be sown as early in the year as possible in a cold frame. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse or cold frame for their first year. Plant out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer.
Division, best done after flowering. Very easy, larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the spring.
Cultivation: Prefers a sunny position[1][2]. Requires a well-drained soil and needs to be kept dry in summer[3]. Established plants are drought tolerant[4].
Plants are best grown in a cold frame in Britain to protect them from summer damp[2]. Bulbs should be planted 7 - 10cm deep and will require feeding after they have flowered[2]. The leaves appear in the autumn and require protection from severe frosts[5].
Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer or rabbits[6].
Range: S.W. Europe to N. Africa.
Habitat: Sandy and limestone soils[2] in dry rocky places[7].
Edibility: Bulb - cooked. Used as a vegetable[8][9][10][11].
Pollinators: Insects
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
In Leaf: Mid Fall-Mid Summer
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: Many plants in this genus are thought to be poisonous if ingested, so caution is advised[12]. The roots are especially likely to be toxic[13].
Plants can cause skin irritations and allergies in some people[13].
Also Known As: I. juncea.
Links
References
- ↑ Grey, Charles. Hardy Bulbs. Williams & Norgate, 1938.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Innes, Clive. The World of Iridaceae. Holly Gate, 1985.
- ↑ Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Chatto, Beth. The Damp Garden. Dent, 1982.
- ↑ Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Bulbs. Pan Books, 1989.
- ↑ Thomas, Graham. Perennial Garden Plants. J. M. Dent & Sons, 1990.
- ↑ Tutin, Tom et al.. Flora Europaea. Cambridge University Press, 1964.
- ↑ Douglas, James. Alternative Foods.
- ↑ Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ Frohne, Dietrich and Hans Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Timber Press, 1984.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.