Iris bloudowii

Iris bloudowii is a species in the genus Iris . It is also in the subgenus of Iris and in the Psammiris section. It is a rhizomatous perennial, from Russia, Siberia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and China, with sickle-shaped leaves, slender stem and 2 bright or pale yellow flowers. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant in temperate regions.

It is similar in form to Iris humilis (another Psammiris species).^[2]

It has a thick, short, irregularly shaped, fibrous rhizome.^{[3] [4] [5]} They are 0.5–1.5 cm (0–1 in) in diameter.^[6] Under the rhizome are numerous yellow-white, secondary roots.^{[5] [7]} On top of the rhizome, are the brown, fibrous remains of old leaves.^{[3] [4] [8]} The rhizome has many branches, creating a slowly, creeping plant.^{[3] [9]}

It has 2–4^[4] linear,^{[5] [6] [9]} lanceolate,^{[4] [9]} or sword-shaped basal leaves.^{[3] [5] [7]} They are slightly curved or sickle-shaped.^{[3] [4] [7]} They appear in spring, as broad, brown shoots,^[10] before turning greyish green^{[3] [5] [8]} or light green.^[11] They can grow up to between 8 and 12 cm (3 and 5 in) long and between 4 and 8 mm wide at blooming time.^{[3] [7]} Later, they extend up to between 15 and 25 cm (6 and 10 in) long and between 8 and 13 mm wide.^{[6] [7] [10]} They have 5–6 longitudinal veins, but no central mid-vein.^{[3] [7] [12]} The leaves are deciduous, and die away after flowering.^{[5] [10]}

It has a slender, erect stem, that can reach up to between 8 and 10 cm (3 and 4 in) long.^{[3] [7]} After flowering, the stem extends up to 35 cm (14 in) long.^{[13] [14] [15]} It is not branched and carries the flowers above the foliage.^{[2] [7]}

The stem has 2 or 3 keeled, oblong-lanceolate, reddish purple, membranous spathes or bracts (leaves of the flower bud).^{[9] [10]} They are 4 cm (2 in) long and 1.6–2 cm wide.^{[3] [7] [10]}

The stems hold 2 terminal (top of stem) flowers,^{[12] [13] [16]} blooming in late spring,^[17] between April and May,^{[5] [11]} or June (in Russia).^[4] The flowers are held on pedicels (stalks) that are 0.5–2 cm long.^{[2] [3] [7]}

The flowers are 5–6 cm (2–2 in) in diameter,^{[6] [7]} come in shades of yellow,^{[15] [16] [17]} from bright yellow,^{[2] [10] [18]} to clear yellow,^{[7] [13]} to dark yellow.^{[5] [12]}

It has 2 pairs of petals, 3 large sepals (outer petals), known as the 'falls' and 3 inner, smaller petals (or tepals), known as the 'standards'.^[19] The falls are obovate,^{[3] [4] [7]} or ovate,^[9] with purple or brown veins,^{[12] [13] [14]} leading to the haft (the section closest to the stem),^[2] and have a central yellow^{[5] [12] [14]} or golden beard.^{[7] [13]} They are 4 cm long and 2 cm wide.^{[3] [7]} The upright standards are oblanceolate and 3–4.5 cm long and 1–1.2 cm wide.^{[3] [7]} They are narrower and shorter than the falls.^[9]

It has a 1–1.5 cm long perianth tube,^{[2] [3] [7]} which is equal in length to the green, spindle-shaped^[7] ovary.^{[3] [4]} The ovary also has 6 purple stripes.^[2] The plant also has 1.8–2.2 cm (1–1 in) long stamens,^{[3] [7]} and bright yellow style branches that are flat and 2.5 cm long.^{[3] [7]}

After the iris has flowered, between June and August,^{[3] [4] [7]} it produces an oval or ovoid seed capsule,^[3] on a 1–1.2 cm long stalk.^{[4] [7]} Inside are dark brown, ellipsoid or oval seeds, which are 5 mm long and 3 mm wide.^{[3] [4] [7]} They are wrinkled and have a white aril (appendage).^{[3] [4] [7]}

In a 1986 study, the chromosomes of 3 iris species in China, Iris mandshurica , Iris uniflora and Iris bloudowii, were counted. Iris bloudowii had a count of 2n=26.^[20]

In 2005, a study was carried out on Iris bloudowii.^[21]

In 2012, a genetic study was carried out on Iris laevigata and it is from several closely related iris species, including Iris ensata , Iris setosa , Iris halophila , Iris scariosa , Iris potaninii , Iris tenuifolia , Iris bloudowii, and Iris sanguinea .^[22]

As most irises are diploid, having two sets of chromosomes, this can be used to identify hybrids and classification of groupings.^[19] It has been counted several times, 2n=22 (Marc Simonet, 1934), 2n=22 (Randolph, 1947), 2n=26 (Simonet, 1952) and 2n=26 (Doronkin, 1984).^[2]
It is commonly published as 2n=22, 26,^{[12] [14]} or 2n = 26.^{[5] [20]}

It has the common names of 'Bludov iris' or 'Bludova iris' (in Russia).^{[11] [15] [23]} It was also known as 'Blondow's iris'^[24] due to a spelling translation mistake.

It is written as 中亚鸢尾 in Chinese script,^[3] and known as Zhōng Yà yuān wĕi in Pinyin in China.^{[3] [25]} 'Zhong ya yuan wei' is translated into English as 'Central Asian iris',^[25] or 'central iris'.^[7]

The Latin specific epithet bloudowii refers to von Bloudow (or Count Dmitri N. Bludova, 1785–1864^[26] ), a former President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, founded in Saint Petersburg.^[10]

It was first published and described by Carl Friedrich von Ledebour in Icones Plantarum (Icon. Pl.) Vol. 2 on page 5 in 1830.^{[27] [28] [29]}

The type specimen for description was collected from the Altai Mountains.^{[7] [29]}

It was also published in Flora Altaica, Volume 4 on page 331 in 1833.^{[2] [25] [30]} Then in February 2007, Brian Mathew published an article in Curtis's Botanical Magazine Volume 24, Issue 1, pages 30–33.^[31]

It was verified by United States Department of Agriculture and the Agricultural Research Service on 2 October 2014.^[25]

Iris bloudowii is an accepted name by the RHS.^[32]

Iris bloudowii is native to temperate regions of central Asia.^{[25] [28] [32]}

It is found within the Siberian region,^{[14] [28] [33]} of the Russian Federation,^{[10] [32]} in the states of Aga Buryat, Buryatia, Chita, Gorno-Altay, Irkutsk, Krasnoyarsk, Tuva and Primorye.^[25] It is also found in Kazakhstan,^{[4] [34]} and Mongolia.^{[14] [25] [28]} It is also found in China,^{[9] [12] [14]} within the Chinese province of Xinjiang ^{[7] [25]} (also known as 'Chinese Turkestan').^{[10] [13]}

This includes the Altai Mountains,^{[13] [35]} and Tien Shan Mountains.^{[2] [8] [14]}

It is listed with Iris glaucescens , Iris humilis , Iris ruthenica , Iris sibirica , Iris tenuifolia and Iris tigridia being found in the Altai-Sayan region (where Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan come together).^[36]

It grows on the grassy meadow slopes of mountains,^{[6] [7] [12]} on the edge of woods and forests,^{[2] [4] [7]} in sandy dunes,^{[3] [7]} and coastal meadows.^[4]

It prefers sandy soils similar to Iris humilis.^[2]

It is hardy to between USDA Zone 4 and Zone 9.^[18]

It is very cold hardy but prefers dry winter conditions.^[2]

It prefers to be grown in well-drained, light sandy soils.^{[2] [6]} It can grow in gravelly soils.^[16]

It can tolerate mildly acidic or mildly alkaline soils (pH levels between 6.1 and 7.8).^{[18] [16]}

It can tolerate positions in full sun.^{[2] [18]}

It has average water needs during the growing season,^[18] but it should be kept dry during the winter.^{[2] [13]}

In the UK, it is best grown in a covered frame,^{[10] [13]} but it can grown in the open in Russia.^[4] It is rare in cultivation in the UK.^[17]

It is grown in rock gardens.^[16]

It has been grown in Russia since 1829. It was tested in botanical gardens of Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Chita and Barnaul.^{[4] [16] [29]}

Aphis newtoni Theobald can be found on Iris bloudowii, Iris latifolia , Iris spuria and Tigridia pavonia .^[37]

It can be propagated by division or by seed growing.^{[6] [18]}

In 2003, a study was carried out on pollinating and germinating seeds of Iris bloudowii. It was concluded that if the pollination was around 12:00 in the morning. It is self-incompatibile.^[38]

Iris bloudowii is rarely used in hybridizing, but a cross with Iris lutescens called 'Promise' was successful.^[2] It also has 2 cultivars, 'Bloudowii Rupestris' and 'Bloudowii Turkestanica'.^[2]

Like many other irises, most parts of the plant are poisonous (rhizome and leaves), and if mistakenly ingested can cause stomach pains and vomiting. Also, handling the plant may cause a skin irritation or an allergic reaction.^[18]

• Czerepanov, S. K. 1995. Vascular plants of Russia and adjacent states (the former USSR).
• Khassanov, F. O. & N. Rakhimova. 2012. Taxonomic revision of the genus Iris L. (Iridaceae Juss.) for the flora of Central Asia. Stapfia 97:177.
• Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934–1964. Flora SSSR. [lists as I. bloudowi Bunge].
• Mathew, B. 1981. The Iris. 39.
• Waddick, J. W. & Zhao Yu-tang. 1992. Iris of China.

• Two photos of Iris bloudowii in flower in the Altai Mountains
• Data related to Iris bloudowii at Wikispecies

• Iris (plant)
• Flora of China
• Flora of Kazakhstan
• Flora of Mongolia
• Flora of Russia
• Flora of Siberia
• Garden plants of Asia
• Plants described in 1833

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• Short description is different from Wikidata
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