Iris damascena
| Iris damascena | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Iridaceae |
| Subfamily: | Iridoideae |
| Tribe: | Irideae |
| Genus: | Iris |
| Subgenus: | Iris |
| Species: | Iris damascena |
| Binomial name | |
|
Iris damascena Mouterde |
|
Iris damascena is a species of plant in the genus Iris. It is a rhizomatous perennial endemic to Mount Qasioun in Syria. It has thin, sickle-shaped, grey-green leaves and medium-sized stem that holds 1-2 large flowers between March and April. Inflorescences are white or grey-white with purple-brown spotting or veining and a small blackish or dark purple signal patch with a sparse, purple or dark purple beard. It is rarely cultivated as an ornamental plant in temperate regions, as it needs very dry conditions during the summer. The species is classified as critically endangered by the IUCN.
The Latin specific epithet damascena refers to coming from Damascus, Syria. In 1693, the name Iris damascena was used for a species of , This name was later ignored due to Linnaeus' genus re-classification in 1753.
On 23 March 1951, a specimen of the iris (now stored at the Herbarium Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève in Switzerland) was collected from a mountain in Syria. In 1957, the species and several other iris species from Syria were described by Werckmeister. The species was first formally described by Paul Mouterde in 1966.
The species is very similar in form to Iris sofarana, another Oncoyclus iris, from Syria and Lebanon. It has a short and compact brown rhizome, thick secondary roots and fine root hairs. Above the rhizome, there are 5-8 curved or falcate leaves of green or grey-green color. The narrow leaves, Leaves can grow up to 27–35 cm (11–14 in) long and up to 1 cm wide. They fade in winter and reappear in spring. It has a slender stem or peduncle, that can grow 15–30 cm (6–12 in) tall. The stem has 1 or 2 spathes (leaf of the flower bud), which are inflated, slightly pale violet-purple tinged and up to 10 cm (4 in) long. It holds one terminal (top of stem) flower, blooming between March, and April. The large flowers are between 9–16 cm (4–6 in) in diameter. They are bi-coloured, and have a creamy white, grey-white, or white ground, which is covered in brown-purple, or purple, veining, or spotting. The veining is similar to the veining on the flowers of I. sofarana. Like other irises, it has 2 pairs of petals, 3 large sepals (outer petals), known as the 'falls' and 3 inner, smaller petals (or tepals), known as the 'standards'. The falls are obovate to elliptic shaped, and up to 8 cm (3 in) long and 5 cm wide. They are more marked than the standards, In the centre of the falls, it has a small elliptical signal patch, 1.5 cm long and 1 cm wide, which is dark purple, or blackish. Also, in the middle of the falls, is a sparse, row of short hairs called the 'beard', which is dark purple, or purple. The paler standards are oval and up to 9 cm (4 in) long and 6 cm wide. They have thinner, or finer veining and small dots than the falls. They have anthers about 2.5 cm long. After the iris has flowered, it produces a seed capsule that has not yet been described.
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