Each of the several bearded iris that I grow have history. Their origins are more significant than their performance. None were merely purchased. I obtained my first, which is actually Dalmatian iris rather than bearded iris, from the garden of my maternal maternal great grandmother when I was about five years old, before I was in kindergarten.

Some of the seventeen or so that inhabit my garden may be added to a designated iris garden at work as they multiply. Some of the eight or so that inhabit the designated iris garden at work may be added to my garden as they multiply. I will likely procure at least two additional cultivars when I return to the Pacific Northwest later in winter, as well as Louisiana iris from another source.

The most abundant of the bearded iris within the designated iris garden at work were recycled from where they had become too abundant in a home garden in Santa Cruz. They are unidentified. I suspected that they might be a simpler species, rather than a hybrid bearded iris, because they resemble my simple Dalmatian iris. Their floral stems are similarly slender. The leaves are similarly somewhat narrow. The fragrance is similar. The main differences are that the floral stems are a bit shorter, the flowers are rich purple rather than lavender blue, and instead of blooming promptly and thoroughly only for early spring, they bloom sporadically throughout spring, and again about now.

After posting a picture of them last winter, I was informed that they could be ‘Rosalie Figge’. They conform to the description of the cultivar, although they bloom for winter rather than autumn. They were blooming a month ago, and are still blooming now. Although I do not care what they are, it would be nice to know.