A bred colour, not a dyed one
The iris palette is wide, but pink took time. It was uncommon among tall bearded irises until breeders moved from plants with two sets of chromosomes to ones with four. Since then there have been pinks from cool rose through peach to coral, so a pink iris is a real cultivated colour.
Cut irises are mostly Dutch types, which do not come in pink. You are therefore more likely to meet a pink iris in a border in late spring and early summer than in a vase.
A famous pink
'Beverly Sills' is a tall bearded iris with coral-pink flowers of excellent form. It won the Dykes Medal, the top American iris award, and flowers in May and June with many stems each year. It is rated hardy to USDA zone 3, so Irish winters are no trouble provided the rhizome has good drainage.
The Irish flower question
Searches for 'the Irish flower' and for irises in Kilkenny suggest people want a link between iris and Ireland. The one solid connection is the wild yellow flag, Iris pseudacorus, a wild plant of wet ground in the British Isles. It is yellow, not pink.
Planting a pink bearded iris
- Choose full sun and well-drained soil.
- Set the rhizome with its top just showing.
- Water in, then leave alone; they dislike soggy soil.
Pets
The ASPCA lists irises as toxic to dogs, cats and horses, with the rhizome the main source of salivation, vomiting and diarrhoea.
