Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1886-10-29
THE JAPANESE IRIS.
A New Jersey Florists Display of the Com
ing Flower of Fashion.

A New Jersey Florists Display OF the Com
ing Flower of Fashion.
Good authorities say that the Japan
csc iris is to be the next fashionable
flower. Thomas Hogg, Jr., went to
Japan in 1858 and sent to his brother
many beautiful plants, and above all
fifteen named varieties of the japanese
iris. Since that time the admiration
for them has steadily grown among
amateurs, and all who know them agree
that they are destined speedily to Gre
ate craze. There is at present at
Passaic, N. j., foriculturist who has
large beds of them, and he himself is
surprised and does not know whether
their unusual splendor is due to accident
or whether the glory will be repeated
annually.
The japanese iris differs in the most
striking way from the indigenous iris
of America (versi-color 'blue
flag"O, which grows SO profusely in
the marshy places of this State and
Connecticut, and also from the yellow
flag of England, the "great white fleur-
de-luce' of Florence, whose roots are
the orris roots of commerce, and the
iris Germanica, which in spite of its
name belongs to Southern Europe, and
has been for long time cultivated by
the florists of Holland. These Euro
pean species and the American versi
color are alike in conformation and re-
semble the heraldic heur-de-lis.
The Japanese iris, whether double or
single, is as fiat as camellia. If it is
single the sepals are large and the
petals about the same size as the stam-
ems, which are very large and fleshy.
If it is double the petals are as large as
the sepals, and the whole six form a
large and imposing flower Among
the irises from Japan at Passaic is one
called the Ida, which is said to be the
typical one from which the gifted Jap
anese florists have evolved these beau
tiful varieties. Strange to say, it is in
conformation exactly like versicolor
and the European species, with depend
ent sepals and erect petals. The latter
are most diminutive and bend toward
the center of the flower, while the
former are only large in comparison
with the petals This dwarf flower
grows upon tall, handsome stem. If
Ida be really the original of the Japan
csc irises, then their florists have ac-
complished miracles.
The colors of the irises at Passaic are
as superior to those of the best varieties
of Germanica, as the shape excels
them. The old Dutch florists by sedu-
lous cultivation of the European species
obtained some fine color effects, but
these are nothing to what the japanese
florists have achieved. They have not
only superior colors, but these are
variegated in the most exquisite way OF
veinings, pencilings and mottlings.
No plumage of any bird, no wings OF
any butterfly, no cattleya among
orchids, can surpass the iris Ichi Ben
in its artistic coloring. Irises only last
two days, but the plant is prolific in
buds, and as fast as one splendor fades
another discloses itself. The stamens
in some flowers are extraordinary
They range as high IN number aseight,
instead of three, the legitimate number
but there is marked tendency in al
the japanese irises to variation in the
numbers of stamens.-N. Y. Tribune