This attractive bearded iris can be seen in the Mediterranean Beds.
Numbering approximately 300 species the genus Iris occurs throughout the northern hemisphere. Species are either rhizomatous or bulbous, and enjoy a range of habitats from moist marginal areas to dry steppe. The rhizomatous, bearded species have a beard of prominent white or coloured hairs along the centre of the fall petals. They are familiar garden plants, with numerous hybrids gracing our gardens. This species, I. pallida, originates from the Balkans. It has attractive pale blue flowers with a soft yellow beard, which rise above the sword-shaped foliage. As with all the bearded species it thrives in poorer soils in full sun.