Category: photography and imagery

From “Iris: The Flower of the Rainbow” in Flowers in History by Peter Coats:

“The story of the iris begins many years before the birth of Christ, and it is said that among the spoils of war that the Pharaoh of Egypt, Thutmosis I, brought back from his Syrian wars in 1950 BC, was an important collection of medicinal roots, dried herbs and seeds. Only a few were meant to be grown as flowers, and most of the collection was put at the disposal of the court physicians and sorcerers, for research and the production of love philtres. But Thutmosis thought highly of his botanical booty and had it commemorated on a carved marble panel which can still be seen on the walls of the temple of the Theban Ammon at Karnak. The carving includes several different flowers — among them, Egyptologists claim, a representation of Iris oncocyclus.”

From “Over the Rainbow: Bearded Irises and Your Garden” in A Guide to Bearded Irises: Cultivating the Rainbow for Beginners and Enthusiasts by Kelly Norris:

“Purple, almost to annoyance, is the quintessential iris color. Though a rather vernacular word for any number of specific colors between red and blue, including… indigo and violet, it permeates the rainbow in gardeners’ minds when someone utters the word ‘iris.’ Like blue does for delphiniums or gentians, and yellow for sunflowers or daffodils, purple in many ways defines the genus Iris.”

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Hello!

Happy June the First to all those who celebrate!

To mark the occasion — which is also the start of meteorological summer (because weather-people apparently have their own seasons); the beginning of Atlantic Hurricane Season (only good news if you’re a hurricane); and the date of many historical events and holidays — I’ve assembled the first of two posts featuring irises in various shades of purple and violet from Oakland Cemetery’s gardens.

Violet can be difficult to differentiate from purple, especially among flowers that bloom not in single colors but in hues that vary so much depending on the condition of the flower, the light or shadow nearby, and whether or not The Photographer remembers what color they were when he or she photographed them. I had originally thought those flowers in the middle of the images below — those next to a concrete wall — were violet or deep purple in color, but couldn’t seem to get a natural look for them in Lightroom.

So I went back to the gardens to hunt them up again, discovering that, in real life, the ruffled edges and petal undersides were often violet, but the center mass of each flower’s falls was more like fuchsia or magenta in color, rather than violet. Violet doesn’t dominate as a color in most of these photos, but instead is scattered throughout individual flowers wherever purple seems to head in a dark direction. I know this because — color nerd that I’m apparently becoming — I used a color slurping tool to pick out groups of pixels and determine which ones were interpreted as shades of violet versus shades of purple, blue, or magenta. Yes, I actually did that….

My previous iris posts are:

Irises in Pink, Peach, and Splashes of Orange (2 of 2)

Irises in Pink, Peach, and Splashes of Orange (1 of 2)

Irises in Blue and Purple Hues (2 of 2)

Irises in Blue and Purple Hues (1 of 2)

Black Iris Variations (and Hallucinations)

Thanks for taking a look!

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From “Iris: The Flower of the Rainbow” in Flowers in History by Peter Coats:

“Iris was the Goddess of the Rainbow, and in Greek mythology she is hardly distinguishable from the natural phenomenon itself. On occasions she seems to have acted as messenger from the gods, as a link between Olympus and mortals below, in that she touched both sky and earth….

“Iris, the flower, may surely be said to have borrowed its various colors from the sky. There are few iris in cultivation which are, in color, different to the tints the sky can show, and there are few skies, of untroubled blue, thundery purple, fresh primrose or dying pink, which might not find their colors reflected in the petals of the modern iris….”

From “Over the Rainbow: Bearded Irises and Your Garden” in A Guide to Bearded Irises: Cultivating the Rainbow for Beginners and Enthusiasts by Kelly Norris:

“Biologists surmise that elaborate patterning in flowers like the iris probably results in response to pollinators. It’s hard to imagine what iris patterns look like to bees or other insects…. The next time you’re in the garden, just imagine what a bee thinks.”

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Hello!

This is the second of two posts showing irises from Oakland Cemetery’s gardens featuring pink, peach, and orange colors. The first post is Irises in Pink, Peach, and Splashes of Orange (1 of 2).

My previous iris posts for this year are:

Irises in Blue and Purple Hues (2 of 2)

Irises in Blue and Purple Hues (1 of 2)

Black Iris Variations (and Hallucinations)

Thanks for taking a look!

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From Irises: A Gardener’s Encyclopedia by Claire Austin:

“The bearded iris gains its name from the line of thick hairs that emerges from the throat of the flower. These hairs form a long, furry caterpillar towards the back of the falls, and their purpose is to guide insects, such as bees, towards the pollen. Bearded irises are the largest group with the greatest number of cultivated varieties. They are also the most popular group of irises for garden use.

“In the wild, bearded irises grow in an area that stretches from the Mediterranean to Southeast Asia and from the Arabian Peninsula north to southern Russia. They usually are found in a sunny place where the soil is poor and well drained. The flowers, which always have large petals, are borne on stiff stems above broad, sword-like, and usually soft green leaves. These form a handsome clump that is invaluable in a garden.”

From “Over the Rainbow: Bearded Irises and Your Garden” in A Guide to Bearded Irises: Cultivating the Rainbow for Beginners and Enthusiasts by Kelly Norris:

“The citrusy range of tones we call orange makes my mouth water. Orange bearded irises sparkle and gleam on warm spring days, the perfect show for a mid-afternoon stroll through the garden with a mimosa….

“The history of orange bearded irises… traces back to breeding efforts with yellows and pinks, work that was by no means easy. Some of the first orange-colored irises, blends of off-colors or faint allusions to orange by present definitions, lacked good floral substance and architecture. Some of the best examples of these new colors came from crosses involving median irises… and early dwarfs… coupled with further line breeding and use of apricot-colored irises that were the by-products of pink breeding. Many breeders have risen to the challenge of developing orange irises with distinctive colors, good form and substance, and sound growing habits.”

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Hello! More irises!

This is the first of two posts featuring irises from Oakland Cemetery’s gardens whose pink, peach, and orange colors caught my eye, so I gathered them together.

Like many irises, these all have beards, but don’t need to shave. I learned recently about the evolution of the iris’s beard from a delightful documentary called Plant Odyssey, which takes you on a tour through the culture and history of four influential flowers: roses, waterlilies, tulips, and irises. The documentary describes how the iris modified its own structure to develop beards in coevolution with pollinating bees, and how the shapes and colors of the beards are visually interesting to the bees, but also help dislodge pollen.

Those irises producing beards that attracted more bees were more frequently pollinated, giving them a selective advantage — and leading them to produce longer and more brightly colored beards, in order to — you guessed it! — attract even more bees. You can read a little about how this process works on Wikipedia (at this link) — but if you have a Discovery Plus subscription (either from Discovery Plus or Amazon Video), the documentary is a very compelling watch.

Nature rocks!

My iris posts for this year (so far) are:

Irises in Blue and Purple Hues (2 of 2)

Irises in Blue and Purple Hues (1 of 2)

Black Iris Variations (and Hallucinations)

Thanks for taking a look!

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