''Iris douglasiana'', the Douglas iris, is a common

wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant probably is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is in any way different from the w ...

of the coastal regions of Northern and Central

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

and southern

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

in the United States. It grows mainly at lower elevations, below , though it is occasionally found at heights of up to . It is most common in grasslands near the coast; it is regarded as a noxious

weed A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, "a plant in the wrong place", or a plant growing where it is not wanted.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. ...

in pastures, because it forms clumps that inhibit other vegetation, and its

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

are bitter and unpalatable to cattle. This is a typical beardless iris of subgenus '' Limniris'', series '' Californicae'', growing from a

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

that is typically less than a centimeter in diameter. Its leaves are about wide. The flowers, appearing from April to June, are usually a purplish-blue, though occasionally white or yellow flowers are found. Two or three flowers are found on each stem, which is of variable height, ranging from tall.

Taxonomy

It was first described by 19th century botanist David Douglas in

Monterey, California Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under bo ...

. It was first published by the british botanist William Herbert in 'Bot. Beechey Voy.' 9 on page 395 in 1840. Several varieties have been recognized, for example ''Iris douglasiana'' var. ''altissima'' and ''Iris douglasiana'' var. ''oregonensis'' , but the species is highly variable and the varieties may not be well enough defined to be of much practical use. The Douglas iris hybridizes freely with several other species; its natural hybrid with '' I. innominata'' has been designated as ''Iris'' ×''thompsonii'' , and the garden hybrid with the same species as ''Iris'' ×''aureonympha'' . This plant has gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nort ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

References

External links

Entry in the Flora of North America OnlineTreatment from the Jepson ManualPhotographs from the CalPhotos archive
{{Taxonbar, from=Q6070349 douglasiana Flora of California Flora of Oregon Flora of the Klamath Mountains Garden plants of North America Plants described in 1840