''Iris formosana'' is a species of plant in the genus ''
Iris
Iris most often refers to:
*Iris (anatomy), part of the eye
*Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess
* ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants
*Iris (color), an ambiguous color term
Iris or IRIS may also refer to:
Arts and media
Fictional enti ...
'', it is also in the subgenus ''
Limniris'' and the section ''Lophiris''. It is a
rhizomatous
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 ...
perennial plant
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
, from
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
, it has large white or lilac flowers. It is commonly known as the 'Taiwan iris'. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant in
temperate
In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout t ...
regions.
Description
It has thick rhizomes,
with slender branching
stolons
In biology, stolons (from Latin '' stolō'', genitive ''stolōnis'' – "branch"), also known as runners, are horizontal connections between organisms. They may be part of the organism, or of its skeleton; typically, animal stolons are external s ...
.
It has the habit of creating large clumps of plants.
It has herbaceous,
[ erect, sword shaped, rigid,][ leaves that are greyish-green on one side and bright green on the other side.][
The leaves have between 3 and 5 veins or ribs.][ They are similar to '' Iris japonica''s leaves.][
It has a thick,][ flowering stem that can vary, between long.][
It has between 4 and 5 branches.][British Iris Society (1997) ]
The stems have 4–6 spathe
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...
s (leaves of the flower bud), which have membranous margins.[
The stems (and branches) hold between 3 and 5 flowers,][ in Spring,][ or between March and April (in Europe).][
The flowers are similar to ''Iris japonica'' but with shorter basal leaves and larger white flowers.][
The flowers are in diameter,][ and come in shades of white,][ or lilac,][ light purple,][ or lavender,][ or pale blue.]sepals
A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...
(outer petals), known as the 'falls' and 3 inner, smaller petals (or tepals
A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...
), known as the 'standards'.[ The falls are obovate, 4–5 cm long and 2.5 cm wide.][ They blue lines and yellow-brown (or purple,][ or mauve,][) spots around a large yellow or orange crest.][
The standards reflexed obliquely, oblanceolate to oblong,][ and 2.5–3 cm long and 1.5 cm wide.][ It has a furrowed apex.][
It has a white 1 cm long perianth tube,][ 8–9 mm long anthers, that are oblong to linear in shape, 1.5 cm long white filaments and a 1 cm long ovary.][
It has pale blue or white style branches, that are 2 cm long and 6–7 mm wide, that has a fimbriate (fringed) lobe.][
It is self-sterile.][
After the iris has flowered, it produces an oblong-ovate seed capsule,][ measuring 3–4 cm long.][ It has the remains of the perianth tube on the apex of the capsule.][
]
Genetics
As most irises, this species is diploid
Ploidy () is the number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell, and hence the number of possible alleles for autosomal and pseudoautosomal genes. Sets of chromosomes refer to the number of maternal and paternal chromosome copies, respectively ...
, having two sets of chromosomes
A chromosome is a long DNA molecule with part or all of the genetic material of an organism. In most chromosomes the very long thin DNA fibers are coated with packaging proteins; in eukaryotic cells the most important of these proteins are ...
. This can be used to identify hybrids and classification of groupings.[
It has been count several times. Including 2n=28, Yasui 1939,][ ex ]Randolph Randolph may refer to:
Places In the United States
* Randolph, Alabama, an unincorporated community
* Randolph, Arizona, a populated place
* Randolph, California, a village merged into the city of Brea
* Randolph, Illinois, an unincorporated commun ...
& Mitra, AIS 140, 57. 1956, 2n=35, Chimphamba, 1973.[ and 2n=35 (JR Ellis and Y Lim).][
The chromosome count is normally published as 2n = 28][ or as 2n=28, 35.][
]
Taxonomy
It has the common name of 'Taiwan Iris'.Chinese script
Chinese characters () are logograms developed for the writing of Chinese. In addition, they have been adapted to write other East Asian languages, and remain a key component of the Japanese writing system where they are known as ''kanji' ...
and also known as ''tai wan yuan wei'' in Pinyin
Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese for ...
in China.[
The pinyin common name is derived from the ']Milvus
''Milvus'' is a genus of medium-sized birds of prey. The genus was erected by the French naturalist Bernard Germain de Lacépède in 1799 with the red kite as the type species. The name is the Latin word for the red kite.
Species
This is an Old ...
' tail flower, because the shape of the irises flower is similar in form to that of the tail of the Milvus (or kite).[
It is known in ]Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
as ''I wa ta shi san ga ya'' meaning 'Taiwan butterfly flower'.
The Latin specific epithet
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...
''formosana'' refers to the island of Formosa
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is an island country located in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known in the Western political circles, press and literature as Formosa, makes up 99% of the land area of the territorie ...
(former name of Taiwan).
It was first published and described by Jisaburo Ohwi
was Japanese botanist. He was a distinguished member of the Faculty of Science of Kyoto Imperial University. He is perhaps best known for his 1953 .
Species named after Ohwi
* (Cyperaceae) '' Carex ohwii'' Masam.
* (Cyperaceae) '' Cyperus ohwi ...
in Acta Phytotaxonomica et Geobotanica. (Acta Phytotax. Geobot.) Vol.3 page115 in 1934.[
It was verified by ]United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...
and the Agricultural Research Service
The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area. ARS is charged with ext ...
on 4 April 2003, and then updated on 2 December 2004.[
''Iris formosana'' is a tentatively accepted name by the RHS.]
Distribution and habitat
Iris formosana is native
Native may refer to:
People
* Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth
* Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory
** Native Americans (disambiguation)
In arts and entert ...
to temperate regions of Asia.[
]
Range
It is found in north eastern Taiwan.[
]
Habitat
It grows at forest margins, on hillsides or steep cliffs and beside roadsides.[
It grows at mid-elevation and low-elevation mountain,][ altitudes of between above sea level.][
]
Conservation
It is increasingly becoming scarce in the wild.[
The habitat of ''Iris formosana'', is threaten by various factors including, climate change, and human influences. Examples of loss of habitat includes a roadside being mowed regularly and sprayed with ]herbicide
Herbicides (, ), also commonly known as weedkillers, are substances used to control undesired plants, also known as weeds.EPA. February 201Pesticides Industry. Sales and Usage 2006 and 2007: Market Estimates. Summary in press releasMain page fo ...
, and mudslides
A mudflow or mud flow is a form of mass wasting involving fast-moving flow of debris that has become liquified by the addition of water. Such flows can move at speeds ranging from 3 meters/minute to 5 meters/second. Mudflows contain a significa ...
caused by torrential rains collapsing mountainous crags.[
]
Cultivation
It is not hardy
Hardy may refer to:
People
* Hardy (surname)
* Hardy (given name)
* Hardy (singer), American singer-songwriter Places Antarctica
* Mount Hardy, Enderby Land
* Hardy Cove, Greenwich Island
* Hardy Rocks, Biscoe Islands
Australia
* Hardy, Sout ...
to in northern climates,[ and will not tolerate frosts.][
It is hardy to ]USDA
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...
Zone 8 or 9 (−6 °C to −1 °C)[
Due to its non-hardiness in the UK, it is uncommon in cultivation.][
It prefers to grow in humus rich soils,][ with good drainage.][ It can tolerate various soil types,][ including ]calcareous
Calcareous () is an adjective meaning "mostly or partly composed of calcium carbonate", in other words, containing lime or being chalky. The term is used in a wide variety of scientific disciplines.
In zoology
''Calcareous'' is used as an adje ...
or siliceous
Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , most commonly found in nature as quartz and in various living organisms. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is one ...
.[
It can tolerate neutral or acidic soils (PH levels between 6.5 and 7.5).][
It prefers positions in the shade or partial shade.][
It also prefers to be moist during the growing season,][ or have medium to high ]humidity
Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present.
Humidity depe ...
level.[ Over watering or excess water at winter can kill the plant.][
It can be grown in a mixed flower border,][ or as a ]ground cover
Groundcover or ground cover is any plant that grows over an area of ground. Groundcover provides protection of the topsoil from erosion and drought.
In an ecosystem, the ground cover forms the layer of vegetation below the shrub layer known as t ...
plant.[
It can be also grown in containers, in sheltered positions.][
It can be affected by ]slugs
Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc. The word ''slug'' is also often used as part of the common name of any gastropod mollusc that has no shell, a very reduced shell, or only a smal ...
and snails.[
]
Propagation
It can also be propagated by division,[ or by seed growing.][
It is thought to be able to root in water. If the water contains lumps of ]charcoal
Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, cal ...
, to reduce bad smells.[
]
References
Sources
*Mathew, B. 1981. The Iris. 71–73.
*Waddick, J. W. & Zhao Yu-tang. 1992. Iris of China.
*Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994– Flora of China (English edition)
External links
{{Taxonbar, from=Q10915184
formosana
Plants described in 1934
Flora of Asia
Flora of Taiwan