Iris ruthenica
| Iris ruthenica | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Iridaceae |
| Subfamily: | Iridoideae |
| Tribe: | Irideae |
| Genus: | Iris |
| Subgenus: | Limniris |
| Series: | Ruthenicae |
| Species: | Iris ruthenica |
| Binomial name | |
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Iris ruthenica Ker-Gawl |
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| Synonyms | |
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Iris ruthenica, sometimes called 'Ever Blooming Iris' (in the UK), 'Russian Iris', 'Pilgrim Iris' and 'Hungarian Iris' (in Europe), is a species in the genus Iris- subgenus Limniris. It is a rhizomatous perennial, with a wide distribution, ranging from eastern Europe to Central Asia. It has grass-like leaves, thick stem and violet or bluish lavender flowers which are marked with violet veining.
Iris ruthenica is very variable and hybrids can look very similar to Iris uniflora. The other species in the Iris series Ruthenicae. It can be variable with its leaf length and width, and flower height.
It has a creeping rhizome, (about 3-5mm in diameter) which is branched and has fibrous roots. The creeping rhizome forms a clump or a grass-like tuft plant.
It has bright green leaves or greyish green leaves. That are tall and thin, and grass-like, measuring between 10 – 40 cm (8–13 in) long and 2 – 6 mm wide. The leaves can grow longer than the flower stem.
The plant (stem and flowers) grows to a height of between 3–20 cm ref name=signa/>(12 in).
The thick stem is 2–3 cm wide, can grow to heights of between 3–20 cm. It has the remains of last years leaves at the base of the stem.
It blooms in spring, (between May, June and July in the UK) or early to mid summer, with one normally, but occasionally 2 fragrant flowers.
The large flowers are between 3–5 cm in diameter, with a cylindric, perianth tube measuring 0.5--1.5 cm long. The flowers come in a range of blue shades between violet and bluish lavender. Which are marked with violet veining. The falls (measuring 4.5–5 cm) are white. The standards are (measuring 4–6 cm) are almost erect. The bracts (measuring 3–5 cm ) are greenish with pink margins, violet blue stigma, and milky white anthers.
It has a globose (globe-like) to ovoid shaped seed capsule (measuring 1.2--1.5 cm) in June–August (after the flowering period is over). Once they are ripe, the seed capsules fully open and all the seeds are dispersed in one movement. Unlike other iris species. The seeds are pyriform (pear-shaped) and have an aril (white appendage on the edge of the seed). The aril disappears soon after and shrivels up.
As most irises are diploid, having two sets of chromosomes. Which can be used to identify hybrids and classification of groupings. It has a chromosome count: 2n=84 (found by Simonet in 1934).
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Wikipedia