Iris verna |
Iris tenuissima |
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dwarf violet iris |
long-tube iris, slender iris |
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Rhizomes | heterogeneous, whitish, cordlike portions 0.1–1.5 dm × 2–4 mm, enlarging to 6–8 mm diam., densely covered with brown, scalelike leaves, roots absent, or torulose with roots borne along entire rhizome. |
freely branching, producing dense clumps, slender, 0.5–0.7 cm diam., covered with bases of old leaves; roots fibrous. |
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Stems | simple, 5–15 cm. |
simple, solid, 2–3 dm. |
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Leaves | basal with blade light green, ensiform, 0.3–1.5 dm × 0.3–1.3 cm, enlarging to 3.5 dm, glaucous; cauline 5–9, sheathing, imbricate, blade light green, obovate, 1.3–5 cm, increasing in length, proximal shortest, membranous, apex acute. |
basal with blade sometimes pink to red basally, finely ribbed, linear, 3–3.5 dm × 0.5 cm, subglaucous, margins not thickened, apex acute; cauline 1–3, imbricated, mostly free, bractlike, blade linear-lanceolate, inflated. |
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Inflorescence units | 1–2-flowered; spathes divergent, exposing floral tube, green, lanceolate, 2–2.5 cm, apex acuminate. |
(1–)2-flowered; spathes often flushed with pink or red, lanceolate, 4–8 cm × 5–10 mm, subequal or unequal and inner somewhat longer than outer, rigid, apex acuminate. |
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Flowers | floral tube pale violet, filiform, 2.5–6.5 cm, expanding somewhat distally to 2.5–4 cm diam.; sepals widely spreading, blue to violet with yellow or orange longitudinal papillose band at base of blade, obovate, 2–6 × 0.8–2 cm, base gradually attenuate into claw, not crested; petals erect, arching inward at tip, spatulate, 2–7 × 1–2 cm, base abruptly attenuate into claw; ovary linear, to 1.3 cm; styles pale violet, 2.5–4 cm, crests linear-acute, narrow, 0.7 cm; stigmas rounded, margins entire; pedicel 1–3 cm, increasing to 25 cm as capsule matures. |
perianth pale cream with distinct veins of lavender, reddish brown, or brown, margins often distinctly crisped; floral tube funnelform, 3–5.8 cm, slender, then expanding abruptly to base of flower; sepals spreading outward from base and remaining in horizontal position for entire length, narrowly lanceolate to oblanceolate, 4–6.5 × 1.1–1.8 cm, base attenuate into long claw; petals somewhat spreading, not strictly erect, 4.5–6.5 × 0.6–1.4 cm, base gradually attenuate; ovary 1–2 cm, gradually tapering to each end; style 2–3 cm, crests linear, undulate near tip, 1–2.5 cm; stigmas triangular; pedicel 0.8–1.8 cm at anthesis. |
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Capsules | 3-angled with single ridge at each angle, almost hidden in bases of spathes, 1–3.2 × 0.8–1.5 cm, tapering into beak consisting of dried remnant of floral tube. |
oblong, round in cross section, 3–4 cm, base abruptly attenuate into pedicel, apex gradually acuminate into distinct beak apically. |
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Seeds | dark brown, ribbed, 2.8–3.2 mm, lustrous, with small, fleshy aril basally. |
grayish brown, pyriform to oval, 3 mm, wrinkled. |
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2n | = 40. |
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Iris verna |
Iris tenuissima |
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Phenology | Flowering Jun–Jul. | |||||
Habitat | Dry, sunny woods | |||||
Distribution |
se United States
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CA
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Discussion | Varieties 2 (2 in the flora). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Iris tenuissima hybridizes with I. chrysophylla, I. douglasiana, I. hartwegii, I. macrosiphon, I. purdyi, and I. tenax. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 26, p. 379. | FNA vol. 26, p. 386. | ||||
Parent taxa | Iridaceae > Iris > subg. Limniris > sect. Limniris > ser. Vernae | Iridaceae > Iris > subg. Limniris > sect. Limniris > ser. Californicae | ||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||
Synonyms | Neubeckia verna | I. citrina, I. humboldtiana, I. tenuissima subsp. purdyiformis, I. tenuissima var. purdyiformis | ||||
Name authority | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 39. (1753) | Dykes: Gard. Chron., ser. 3, 51: 18. (1912) | ||||
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