Iris ensata 'Moonlight Waves'

 This is an old and much beloved cultivar of Iris ensata. It was registered by R, Wallace and Co.  in 1910. It is a flattish double white, with greenish yellow signals and creamy white style arms. In my garden it grows about 18 inches high and the flowers are about five inches in diameter. It is a reliable bloomer, even when young, and it is one of the specimens I managed to relocate from my old garden. I'm glad I did. It is one of my husband's favourite Irises - it just looks right anywhere you put it!

The exquisite flower of Iris ensata 'Moonlight Waves'.

Copyright © Bernadette Adams 2022

I managed  to find a reference to R Wallace and Co, and as far as I can make out, they appear to be long gone, but I will do a little more digging to see if I can find out a bit more. Below is the entry in Grace's Guide to British Industrial History:

'R. Wallace and Co of Kilnfield Gardens Colchester

Jump to:navigation, searchof Kilnfield Gardens, Colchester.

Specialists in Bulb Culture, Landscape Gardeners, &c.

Established in 1878 by Dr. Alexander Wallace.

1914 Present Principal: Robert Whistler Wallace, J.P., F.R.H.S. Premises: Cover twenty acres. Fully stocked. Staff: Forty. Specialities: Choice Bulbs, Lilies (chiefly), New and Rare Hardy Plants and Bulbs, Landscape Rock and Water Gardening.'

Iris ensata 'Moonlight Waves' in the foreground. As you can see it makes a lovely border plant.

Copyright © Bernadette Adams 2022

So this gorgeous Iris has been available to the public for a hundred and twelve years! My mind wanders as to which gardens it might have graced in that time. This is what I call the 'Romance of Gardening' - all those varied people, with different stories to tell, all fixing on the same plant as me, in different places and different times. More research needed!

As this particular specimen is now getting quite large, I will will probably have some divisions available for sale in August (UK only). Drop me a message if you are interested, in the comment box below!

Happy gardening!

Iris ensata 'Rivulets of Wine'

This beauty was the first post on another blog that I started, and then decided that I just didn't have the time to run a few separate blogs. This beauty is Iris ensata 'Rivulets of Wine'. I love this one because people think that Iris ensata are white or Purple. Not so - there are pinky shades in many.

Iris ensata Rivulets of Wine

copyright © Bernadette Adams 2022

My affair with Iris ensata, started about twenty years ago, when I bought my very first specimen, Iris ensata 'Pinstripe', from Ashwood's Garden centre near Wolverhampton. Sadly, I don't even seem to have a picture of it, and the plant succumbed a long time ago - I am quite ashamed of that, and annoyed, as it is proving quite difficult to find a replacement. My excuse is that life was very busy at the time - it is marginally less so, now. However, I have a new garden which has rekindled my interest in the Species and its gorgeous cultivars. Today, I'm going to talk about Iris ensata 'Rivulets of Wine'

Iris ensata 'Rivulets of Wine'

Iris ensata Rivulets of Wine (left) in the border with a double purple Iris ensata and Iris ensata Moonlight Waves. Copyright © Bernadette Adams 2022

This is one of my favourite new Iris ensatas (on the left in the picture above) - mainly because its colour palette tends more towards the pink than the purple. I also love its veining, which is wine based on an almost white fall (large petals). It is double, and in its first year here the diameter of the flower is about 15 cms, or 6 inches for those who prefer Imperial measurements. Currently it is standing at about 50 cms (20 inches and does not have much of a spread. Next year, I will be expecting a much larger plant growing up to 1 metre tall (40 inches) with multiple stems and blooms. Here in Cumbria it started flowering on the 20th of June, and is still in flower.

Iris ensata Rivulets of Wine was bred by Terry Aitken, whose Salmon Creek Garden in Vancouver, Canada, is famous for its irises. He registered it in 1999, and it has won the Award of Merit Award in 2006, and an Honorable Mention in 2002. 

It really is an eye catching gorgeous Iris, which will attract the enquiries of any visitor to your garden when it is in bloom. I bought my bareroot division from the Gobbett Nursery, who produce many wonderful plants. Their main outlet is through plant fairs but you can order plants for delivery, which they will send to you when the season is over in October or thereabouts. 

Please note: All the material on this Blog is the property of Bernadette Adams and is covered by copyright law (unless otherwise stated). If you wish to use any photos or other material from this Blog you must first get permission from Bernadette Adams.