Summary: The butterfly iris is often tucked away in forgotten corners of many gardens. Given little attention and care, the butterfly iris plant faithfully reward their owners with a short but glorious period of bloom every spring.
For decades, the butterfly iris, or spuria, iris has been the neglected member of the iris family. But this will no longer be true when new, breathtaking varieties are more widely grown and enjoyed. There is even a section of the American Iris Society dedicated to Spuria types.
Butterfly iris are native to Asia and Europe, coming in a great variety of sizes and colors. A clue to their cultural requirements comes from the old species name “halophila,” which means “salt-loving.” Spuria iris will grow in almost any kind of soil; even newer hybrids will tolerate salty and alkaline soils although it has been erroneously held that they require a neutral or acid soil.
The rhizomes or fleshy roots of the spuria iris do not tolerate drying when out of the ground but in the garden they seem to prefer a baking after they have flowered. When in active growth, however, they respond to plenty of water, in which respect they resemble the Louisiana and Japanese iris. The blooming period of spurias in the United States follows that of the bearded iris; in the north the interval between blooming periods is longer than in the south where they overlap.
The species and many of the hybrids are self-fertile. Seeds are produced in such large quantities and germinate so readily that they frequently take over the whole garden unless vigorously controlled. An interesting characteristic of spuria iris seeds is the thin parchment envelope containing air in which each individual seed is enclosed. This enables the spuria seed to float and assist its distribution along rivers.
While many of the supposed species are probably natural hybrids, the introduction of horticultural hybrids has been progressing rapidly. Among the early hybrids which were popularly accepted was Barr’s A. J. Balfour, introduced at the turn of the 20th century. Sir Michael Foster added several, the best-known of which are Monspur and Sheldord Giant. The genius of the Sass family gave us the excellent yellow Sunny Day.
Flower of the Butterfly Iris
The flower of the spuria or butterfly iris is quite similar to that of the Dutch iris but the stalks are much taller. There are also three or four pairs of flowers on short branches to each stalk, making this species valuable as a cut flower and in arrangement work.
When the lovely new forms and colors are better known, the butterfly iris is destined to find more favor in gardens of all sections of the country. Not only does its blooms have great garden value, but the swordlike foliage is attractive and useful in arrangements throughout the year. Butterfly iris are also unexcelled for corsages since the flower resembles an orchid but is less fragile.
41542 – FGR-0652
