Iris verna

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Iris verna
Iris verna v. smalliana.jpg
A blooming clump of Iris verna var. smalliana
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Iridaceae
Genus: Iris
Subgenus: Iris subg. Limniris
Section: Iris sect. Limniris
Series: Iris ser. Vernae
Species:
I. verna
Binomial name
Iris verna
L.

Iris verna, the dwarf violet iris, is a species of flowering plant in the iris family (Iridaceae). [1] It is endemic to the eastern United States from Maryland to Florida along the Atlantic Coast, west to Mississippi, and inland to Kentucky, Tennessee, and Ohio. [2] [3] [4] It occurs in nutrient-poor acidic soils of open to semi-shaded woodlands. [3]

Contents

Description

Iris verna is a small herbaceous, perennial flowering plant. It forms colonies through its deeply-buried underground rhizomes. It blooms in spring and generally has light to deep blue or violet inflorescence, although rare white forms are known. The sepals have a golden yellow signal. [5]

It can be distinguished from the similar-looking Iris cristata , which occurs over much of its range, by a number of characters. Iris verna lacks the crested ridges that are found on the sepals of Iris cristata, and its flowers are strongly fragrant (Iris cristata is not strongly fragrant). In addition, the leaves of Iris verna are narrower and straighter than those of Iris cristata, and it has rhizomes that are deeply buried (as opposed to the shallow rhizomes of Iris cristata). [6]

Taxonomy

Two varieties are recognized: [3] [7]

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<i>Iris fulva</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Iris savannarum</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Iris clarkei</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Iris wilsonii</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Iris sintenisii</i> Species of flowering plant

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Iris sikkimensis is a plant species in the genus Iris, it is also in the subgenus Iris and in the section Pseudoregelia. It is a rhizomatous perennial, from Sikkim. It has pale green or light green thin leaves, slender stem, 2 or 3 lilac or purple flowers, with a white beard with orange tips. It is thought to be a hybrid of Iris hookeriana and Iris kumaonensis.

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<i>Iris subbiflora</i> Species of plant

Iris subbiflora is a plant species in the genus Iris, it is also in the subgenus Iris. It is a rhizomatous perennial, from Portugal and Spain in Europe. It has evergreen broad leaves, forming dense clumps, it has dwarf stems in late spring,, with 1 upright fragrant flower, in shades of purple, light red purple, grey-blue, blue-violet, or dark violet. It has a beard which is generally blue, purple, or violet, but can fade to white, dull yellow, or dark yellow. After being found in 1804, it was once a separate species until the late 70s, when it was reclassified as subspecies of Iris lutescens, and renamed Iris lutescens subsp. subbiflora. But in the 80s it was returned to an independent species but some authors and references still class the species as a synonym or subspecies. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant in temperate regions.

<i>Patersonia occidentalis</i> Species of flowering plant

Patersonia occidentalis, commonly known as purple flag, or long purple-flag, is a species of flowering plant in the family Iridaceae and is endemic to southern Australia. It is a tufted, rhizome-forming perennial with narrow, sharply-pointed, strap-like leaves, egg-shaped, bluish violet sepals and a cylindrical capsule. The Noongar name for the plant is komma.

References

  1. USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Iris verna". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  2. "Iris verna". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 Iris verna Flora of North America
  4. Tom S. Cooperrider, Allison Cusick, John T. Kartesz (Editors) Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of Ohio&pg=PA92 agWRx_4tfLoC , p. 92, at Google Books
  5. "Iris verna var. verna: Coastal Plain Dwarf Violet Iris". US Forest service. Retrieved 2013-09-12.
  6. 1 2 Alan Weakley (2015). "Flora of the Southern and Mid-Atlantic States".
  7. "Iris verna". The University of Texas at Austin. Retrieved 2013-09-12.