Iris savannarum |
Iris orientalis |
|
---|---|---|
prairie iris, savanna iris |
yellowband iris |
|
Rhizomes | greenish, freely branching, forming large, open clumps, 2–2.5 cm diam., fleshy, with fibrous bases of old leaves not covering rhizome but persisting on ringlike scars. |
sparingly short-branched, forming dense clumps, 1–1.5 cm diam., hard, with old leaf bases at nodes; roots fleshy. |
Stems | 1-branched, solid, 3–10 dm. |
slightly flattened, with 1–2 short branches, solid, 4–12 dm. |
Leaves | basal usually dying back shortly after anthesis, blade bright green, 6–10 dm × 0.8–2 cm, sometimes glaucescent; cauline with blade elongate, linear-attenuate, 15–20 cm, exceeding flowers. |
basal erect, blade with slight spiral twist and central ridge, 3.5–8 dm × 1–2 cm, stiff, harsh, fibrous, glaucous; cauline 2–3, 1–2 subtending floral clusters, blade reduced. |
Inflorescence units | 1–3-flowered, branch units 1–2-flowered; spathes lanceolate, subequal or unequal, apex acute; outer 8–10 cm, herbaceous, margins scarious; inner 6–9 cm, completely scarious. |
clustered, 2–4-flowered; spathes white, 3–5 cm, subequal, papery. |
Flowers | perianth blue to blue-violet (white in forma albispiritis); floral tube funnelform, 1.2–1.5 cm; sepals blue or pale violet with flecks of white and lines of deeper blue on either side of ridge, spatulate, elliptic to ovate, 7–8 cm, apex acuminate, ridge yellow, linear, extending to about middle of limb, finely pubescent, claw light green, striated, ribbed, 1–1.2 cm; petals erect or spreading-erect, deep blue, linear to narrowly linear-spatulate, 6–7.5 cm, base abruptly attenuate into claw, claw channeled, green with darker lines, margins pale; ovary bluntly 3-angled, ridged at each angle and on faces between angles; style linear-acute, 5–6 cm; crests ovate, 1–2 cm, margins sharply and irregularly toothed; stigmas broadly 2-lobed, margins crenate; pedicel 1.6–2 cm. |
perianth white; floral tube funnelform, 1–2.5 cm; sepals spreading and arching downward, with large yellow basal area, broadly orbicular, 8–10 × 3–6 cm, apex rounded, deeply emarginate; petals white, spatulate, 4–6 × 1–1.5 cm, base gradually attenuate, apex emarginate; ovary triangular in cross section with 2 ribs at each angle, 2–2.5 cm; style white, with parallel sides, 4–5 cm, crests erect, triangular, 1–2 cm; stigmas 2-lobed; pedicel 2.5–7.5 cm. |
Capsules | ellipsoid, round in cross section, roundly 6-lobed, with 6 sharp, winglike, equally spaced ridges converging to form stout beak at apex, 6–10 cm, dehiscence loculicidal. |
ovoid to oblong-elliptic, triangular in cross section, each angle 2-ribbed, 4–5 × 2–2.5 cm. |
Seeds | in 1 row per locule, brown, circular or uneven, flattened, 8–12 mm diam, very corky. |
in 2 rows per locule, white, flattened or wedge-shaped, 4–5 mm, papery, wrinkled. |
2n | = 44. |
= 40. |
Iris savannarum |
Iris orientalis |
|
Phenology | Flowering late Mar–early Apr. | Flowering May–Jul. |
Habitat | Wet ditches, margins of lakes, streams, and swamps | Persisting after cultivation or discarded along roadsides |
Distribution |
AL; FL; GA
|
CA; CT; MO; expected elsewhere; Greece; Turkey [Introduced in North America] |
Discussion | Iris savannarum has often been included in I. hexagona, but differs in several ways. The capsules of I. hexagona are more obviously hexagonal, with smooth faces alternating with those that have two rounded lobes, whereas the capsules of I. savannarum are more rounded but with six obvious ridges, almost of winglike proportions. Iris hexagona has yellow-green leaves instead of the brighter green of I. savannarum. The leaves of I. savannarum die back after anthesis, while those of I. hexagona remain green. The flowering period of I. savannarum is almost one month earlier than that of I. hexagona in the area where both are known to grow. The sepals of I. savannarum are more acute at the apex than those of I. hexagona. Iris savannarum has been hybridized with Iris fulva to produce I. ×cacique (J. Berry) N. C. Henderson. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
|
Source | FNA vol. 26, p. 393. | FNA vol. 26, p. 394. |
Parent taxa | Iridaceae > Iris > subg. Limniris > sect. Limniris > ser. Hexagonae | Iridaceae > Iris > subg. Limniris > sect. Limniris > ser. Spuriae |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | I. albispiritus, I. hexagona var. savannarum, I. kimballiae, I. rivularis | |
Name authority | Small: Addisonia 9: 57, plate 317. (1925) | Miller: Gard. Dict. ed. 8, Iris no. 9. (1768) |
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