A large family, widely distributed and found throughout our continent.
Perennial herbs, with bracts; the leaves long, narrow, toothless, and
sheathing; the flowers showy, perfect and regular, twisted in the bud,
not falling off in withering, of three and six parts; the three stamens
on the base of the sepals, their anthers turning outward; the single
style with three branches; the ovary inferior, becoming a three-celled,
usually three-angled, many-seeded capsule. This family is noticeably
distinguished from the Lily family by the inferior ovary, and from the
Amaryllis family by the three stamens.
There are many kinds of Iris. To the casual observer the flowers appear
to have nine petals of different sizes, but in reality there are three
sepals, three petals, and three petal-like branches of the style. The
three outer divisions, or sepals, are large and spread or turn down;
the three inner divisions, or petals, are usually narrower and are
erect; the style branches arch over and under each is a stamen. The
sepals and petals have claws, which are united below and form a tube;
the capsule is large and contains many, flat, black seeds, in one or
two rows in each cell; the large rootstock is usually fleshy. Iris is
from the Greek for "rainbow," in allusion to the variegated tints, and
Flower-de-luce from the French "fleur-de-lis," or "lily-flower." Many
odd and beautiful kinds are cultivated from the Old World. Orris-root
is made from the roots of a Florentine species.
[Sidenote: =Western Blue Flag=
_Ìris Missouriénsis_
=Violet, blue
Spring, summer
West, except Wash, and Oreg.=]
A very handsome and decorative plant, growing in large clumps,
in damp situations, from stout, creeping rootstocks. The stiff,
sword-shaped leaves, mostly shorter than the stems, are smooth and
light bluish-green and the stout stems, from one to two feet high,
bear usually two, pale-violet flowers, about three inches long,
emerging from thin, papery bracts. The sepals are white, or pale blue,
delicately veined with violet, with a yellow-veined rib down the
middle, the petals are pale blue or pale violet, veined with purple,
and the buds are yellowish, veined with brown. This grows in profusion
in the Yosemite meadows, at the foot of El Capitan, and is delicately
beautiful, but would be more effective if the coloring were a little
stronger.
[Illustration: Western Blue Flag-Iris Missouriensis.]
[Sidenote: =Douglas Iris=
_Ìris Douglasiàna_
=Purple, lilac, cream
Spring, summer
Cal., Oreg.=]
A beautiful kind, very common in the Coast Ranges. It grows in
patches, or singly, and has rather dark green leaves, longer than the
flower-stalks, and lovely flowers, which vary exceedingly in color.
Near the coast they are usually bluish-purple, but in mountain woods
they run from violet and mauve to pink, yellow, and white. They are
often striped with white and yellow, delicately veined with purple,
and measure three or four inches across. In the redwood forests, in
northern California, they are peculiarly large and beautiful, their
delicate tints of cream and straw-color, tinged with mauve and marked
with reddish-purple, and wonderfully set off by their dark forest
background. This kind often blooms throughout the rainy season, but
chiefly in early spring.
[Sidenote: =Hartweg's Iris=
_Ìris Hartwégi_
=Yellow and violet
Summer
California=]
This odd and pretty little Iris grows in half-dry, open forests, in
the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The many flower-stems, from six to twelve
inches tall, are overtopped by some of the long, narrow leaves and the
flowers are from one and a half to two inches long, either yellow,
veined with violet, or pale-violet, veined with purple. The two color
forms often grow together and attract much attention from tourists.
They look very pretty, springing from a carpet of fallen pine-needles,
in the forests along the Wawona road near Yosemite.
[Sidenote: =Ground Iris=
_Ìris macrosìphon_
=Blue, purple
Spring, winter
California=]
A beautiful kind, forming low clumps of many, very narrow leaves, from
five to twenty inches long and much taller than the flower-stalks. The
handsome flowers are over three inches across, bright purplish-blue,
the sepals veined with darker color and marked with a white
stripe. This is common on grassy hills near the coast and farther
inland becomes taller and paler in color. The flowers are slightly
sweet-scented and begin to bloom in January. The Hupa Indians used the
leaves for making twine and rope for their nets and snares. There are
many other beautiful western Irises.
[Illustration: Iris Douglasiana.]
There are numerous kinds of Sisyrinchium, attractive little plants,
all American, many from South America; with fibrous roots; grasslike
leaves; slender, flat stems, sometimes branching; papery and green
bracts and pretty flowers, that soon wither, on very slender pedicels,
the six spreading divisions all alike; the filaments of the stamens
united; the style branches slender, the capsule roundish, containing
round seeds.
[Sidenote: =Blue-Eyed Grass=
_Sisyrínchium béllum_
=Blue Summer
Cal., Oreg.=]
The deep blue stars of this pretty plant are a beautiful feature of the
fields near Santa Barbara, and in other parts of California, in summer;
in fact they are so plentiful in some places that they are a menace
to the farmers. They grow in clumps, about a foot tall, among the
grass. The stems are somewhat branching, the leaves are shorter than
the stem, and the bracts are about an inch long, green and sheathing.
There are about seven flowers on each stem, in a loose cluster, each
about an inch across and handsomer than their relations in the East.
They vary in tint from bright blue to purple, with a yellow "eye," and
their divisions are prettily notched at the tips, with a little prong.
The anthers are arrow-shaped, the style short, with three very small
stigmas, and the small, oddly-shaped, little capsule is dark-brown when
ripe, and perhaps suggested one of the common names, Nigger-babies. It
is called Azulea and Villela by Spanish-Californians.
[Sidenote: =Golden-Eyed Grass=
_Sisyrínchium Califórnicum_
=Yellow
Spring, summer
Cal., Oreg.=]
This is very much like Blue-eyed Grass, but the flowers are bright
yellow, the stems are about a foot tall, broadly winged and not
branching, and the leaves are somewhat broader. The pretty flowers are
nearly an inch across and there are from three to seven in a cluster.
The filaments are united at the base only, the style is cleft to
below the middle, and the small capsule is rather oblong. This grows
in swampy places near the ocean. _S. Arizònicum_ has yellow flowers
and branching stems and grows in Arizona. _S. Élmeri_ also has yellow
flowers, with purple lines, and is found in wet places in the Sierras.
When pressed and dried the yellow-flowered Sisyrinchiums stain the
paper reddish-purple.
[Illustration: Blue-eyed Grass--Sisyrinchium bellum.]