Articles

Here are some articles on various topics related to iris hybridizing. I hope you find them informative.

How-To

• Starting a Hybridizing Program
• Growing Irises from Seed
• Culture of Aril and Arilbred Irises
• Realities: a reflection on a year of successes and setbacks

Reference/Theory

• Chromosomes: Concepts and Terminology
• 31 Ways to Build an Iris
• Compatibility: Difficult and Easy Crosses
• Breeding Strategies
• A Hybridizer's Guide to Bearded Species
• Bearded Species for Breeding Arilbred Medians (originally appeared in Aril Society Internation Special Publication 2011-2014)
• Fertility of the Arilpums
• An Evolutionary Family Tree of the Bearded Irises
• Species Nomenclature: Naming the Wild Irises
• Pronunciation of Latin names (pdf) general guidance and a list of names used on this site.
• The Story of Arilbred Medians (originally appeared in The Medianite 2013-2014)
• What about Psammirises, Pseudoregelias, and Falcifolias?
• Coming to Terms with Arilbred Medians describing the rationale behind the proposed classification system used in my Checklist of Arilbred Dwarfs and Medians, originally appeared in The Medianite 2018)
• The Miniature Dwarfs: A Hybridizer's Survey of the Class, its History, and its Potential
• What is a Dwarf Bearded Iris? A Brief History of the Shifting Definition of the Class

Viewpoint

• Evaluating Garden Irises
• Why Hybridize?
• In a Class by Themselves?
• Pronouncing Botanical Latin: A Personal Perspective

Files for the Iris Hybridizing Facebook Group

These pdf files were created as resources for the Iris Hybridizing Facebook group:

• Basic Genetics 1 - Dominant and Recessive
• Basic Genetics 2 - Dominant and Recessive, Tetraploid Version
• TB Color and Pattern Genetics - Introduction
• Basic Cytogenetics
• Working with Iris Pedigrees
• MS Word pedigree template

AIS Blog Posts

• The Earliest Irises: Welcoming Spring
• Arilbred Irises: A Touch of the Exotic
• Species Iris: Back to Nature
• An Iris by Any Other Name
• Standard Dwarf Bearded Irises: A Success Story
• Growing Irises Organically
• Arilbred Medians: Irises That Have It All
• Understanding Iris Descriptions
• The Evolution of Irises
• Tetraploid Arils, Anyone?
• Iris pumila: A Tiny Treasure
• Classifying Aril and Arilbred Irises
• The Untapped Potential of Iris reichenbachii
• Honey, I Shrunk the Irises!
• Arilbred Irises: A Little History
• Winter Iris Gardening
• Growing Irises from Seed
• Dwarfs for Every Garden
• Our Debt to Iris aphylla
• An Arilbred Iris Sampler
• The Legacy of 'Anacrusis'
• Aril Trek 2018!
• In Praise of Regelias
• Fertilizing Irises
• The Autumn Iris Garden
• Borderline Cases
• Arilpums: Fertile Arilbred Dwarfs!
• Iris lutescens: The Dwarfs that Time Forgot
• Three Myths about Bearded Irises
• What's Wrong with the AIS Awards System
• What is a Dwarf Bearded Iris? (...and why are dwarf lovers so persistent?)
  (this is an expanded version of What is a Dwarf Bearded Iris? A Brief History of the Shifting Definition of the Class)
• Irises in Containers
• Hybridizing with Iris reichenbachii
• Progress with Arilpums
• Winter Pastimes for Iris Enthusiasts
• Pronouncing Botanical Latin: A Personal Perspective
• Arilpums Are Here!
• The Classic MDBs
• Ben Hager's Master Plan to Save the MDB Class
• Miniature Dwarf Bearded Irises: A Starter Kit
• Understanding the Historic Dwarf Bearded (DB) Class
• Is There Life After Bloom Season?
• Bearded Iris Species for the Garden
• Proportion, Proportion, Proportion
• Book Review: Dwarf and Median Bearded Irises by Kevin Vaughn
• The Aril Society Checklist

Notes on Specific Irises

• Iris sp. aff. reichenbachii ex Vardar Gorge
• 'Turkish Topaz'
• 'Zwanenburg'
• Seeds Donated to SIGNA, 2014

 Tom Waters

September 2010

updated April 2023

Unless otherwise noted, all text and illustrations copyright Tom Waters and all photographs copyright Tom or Karen Waters. Please do not reproduce without permission.