Crested Dwarf Iris

(Iris cristata)

 

Color Photograph: Copyright Nearctica.com, Inc.

Line Drawing: Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada, Second Edition.

 

Crested Dwarf Iris (Iris cristata)

Identification: Flowers light blue to light violet, complicated in structure with petals and sepals all showy. Flower with 3 lower "sepals" hanging downward, base with a yellow shoehorn-like appendage (crest). "Sepals" not heavily veined with violet but with a basal patch of yellow. Upper 3 "petals" narrow and pointing generally upward. Seed pods elongate, ovate. Leaves relatively short and broad, embracing the stem, particularly those near the top of the plant. Plant 3 to 8 inches in height.

Distribution: Illinois in the west to Pennsylvania in the east, southward to Georgia and Arkansas.

Habitat: Crested Dwarf Iris is found in wet forests and hills.

Flowering period: April to May.

Crested Dwarf Iris (Iris cristata)

Similar Species: 

The small stature of this species and the yellow crests easily identify this species.

Similar Species

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