Cemetery Iris....

 It is a good memory of visiting cemeteries each year on Memorial Day. The graves are all being decorated with flowers from the home garden flowers. Cut flowers of peonies and iris and sometime they would mix in some ferns to make them more decorated. My aunt Lois always brought jars of water to put her flowers into to keep them fresh longer. In the stages of history people would bring their iris from home and plant them on the graves.  The two different iris seen here came from the Murray Cemetery in southern Iowa. I dug one rhizome from each kind and they have multiplied through the years.

This is another variety that I have collected. They do spread so I eventually have to dig and throw away the advancing rhizomes. 

You can compare the size difference by looking at the hybrid iris growing next to the cemetery iris. I have read that the hybrid iris were bred from the small iris to get the larger size. I read that the yellow and brown iris was the one that started the hybrid processes.

Somehow I lost the yellow and brown cemetery iris.  I also lost an all white one too. The above photo is one that looks a lot like the old fashioned one but I had to buy it and it isn't quit the variety. I do know that some time I will get back to the old Murray Cemetery and I will collect the ones that I lost. The company that sells the one in the picture calls this bumblebee. 

This one variety puts out a lighter color iris and sometime the two different ones are on the same stem.I have one more cemetery one that is white with dark blue falls. It is one of my favorites and is one of the last ones to bloom. 

 I did have iris planted at the graves of my parents, brother and infant sister. The caretakers have decided to level the land and it does look good to have it all graded to the same level. Unfortunately they removed all of them.  I have one fern leafed peony that survived because it was between two of the stones. 

Thanks for stopping by today.