STAGE FRIGHT (T. Johnson ’23)
TB Midseason-late 35” (89cm)
Light fragrance. Standards have a solid pink base which changes to veins over a white ground as it moves towards the gilt gold petal edge. Falls are a rich medium fuchsia with a darker fuchsia wash below the tangerine beard. Nice blocky flowers with good stems and ruffles. Sdlg. TK107B: Apricot Smoothie X Precious Thing pollen parent.

UNIMAGINABLE (Paul Black 23)
TB Early-Midseason 35” (89cm)
Slight musky fragrance It is difficult to say which of the newer veined standards and falls creations I like best. Each is distinctive and has its own appeal. ‘Unimaginable’ is certainly toward the top of the list. Standards are pale lilac with one inch band of dark plum and solid rim. Circular white upper half of falls is covered with black veins progressing to solid black lower half with white dotted laced rims. It is an amazing look. Three branches produce 7-8 buds. Lots of plicata in the background. Sdlg. Z95G: Black V145A: (Etcetera x Spiced Lemon) X Laser Light Show

SHEER MADNESS (B. Blyth ’23)
TB Early 38” (96.5cm)
Musky fragrance. Standards have lilac blue centers that are bordered in reddish violet plicata dotting. Falls have a light-yellow ground that is overlaid with light red around beard, then the ground color becomes a dark yellow that is overlaid with a dark red wash to the petal edge. A very complex color combination that is very pretty and unique. Sdlg. X213-AA:

CELEBRITY DREAM (T. Johnson ’24)
TB Midseason-late 36” (91cm)
Light fragrance. Standards have a white ground that is washed pink, with a deeper pink stitched band. Falls are pristine white with a wide raspberry to purple dotted band across the haft and precise dotted fall edge. Burnt orange beards are tipped purple and then white. A stunning iris! Very good growth and excellent form. The flowers are heavily ruffled and carried on well branched stems with lots of buds. Sdlg. TM25ZZ: What A View X Raspberry Pie

PRETTY SIGHT (Black ’24)
TB Early-midseason 34” (86.5cm)
Sweet fragrance. This taller sibling of ‘Make Up Your Mind’ is a very handsome traditional plicata in a lovely cornflower blue shade. It adds one more branch and a complement of 9-10 buds on show stalks. It too is a strong clean grower. Standards are a near solid cornflower blue with a buff wire edge. Falls have a white ground with cornflower dotting inside a more solid band, and then a complementary buff band. Sdlg. AA84X: Come And Dance X Starry Starry Night

SPECIAL AGENT MAN (Black ’24)
TB Midseason-late 35” (89cm)
Sweet fragrance. Another ‘Crocodile Smile’ child. It has an interesting combination of cool colored standards and warm falls. Falls show a slightly different expression of the plicata pattern. Also notice the interesting dotted plicata pattern on the back of the falls, characteristic of many ‘Crocodile Smile’ offspring. Near solid gray plum standards sit atop butter yellow ground falls with a nearly solid overlay of dark plum and marigold beards. Sdlg. BB108A: Black Y56B: (Hot Off The Press x All Too Exciting) X Crocodile Smile

LEMON PEEL (Black ’24)
TB Early-midseason 34” (86.5cm)
Musky fragrance. Another of the ‘Crocodile Smile’ offspring, with bright yellow ground falls. Plicata markings are variable from flower to flower, which indicates ‘Crocodile Smile’ or its offspring should be good to pair with broken color plicatas. A waxy texture over the falls is fairly common. Notice the vivid yellow styles. Fun and unique. Sdlg. BB104L: Crocodile Smile X Black Y135A: (All Too Exciting x Fancy Ideas)

SACK OF SUNSHINE (Black ’24)
TB Early-midseason 35” (89cm)
Sweet fragrance. This vigorous and hardy yellow ground plicata comes from very different breeding. It produces consistent show stalks that are at home in the garden or on the show bench. Plicata markings are somewhat variable from one year to the next. Use it to breed for better plicata winter hardiness. Sldg. BB98A: Black Y52B: (Black U14A: (Dog Days x Black R133A: (Black O159B: (Out Of The Dark x Sea Power) x Black P75B: (Black L83D, Wonders Never Cease sib x Cheap Frills))) x Black U1A, Luxuriant sib) X Black Z90F: (Black V143B, Heartfelt sib x Black V154F: (Black S114B, Dare Me sib x Black S112H, Bright On Top sib))

FEISTY SPIRIT (T. Johnson ’25)
SDB Early-midseason 13” (33cm) Slight fragrance.
Gorgeous round and ruffled form on this yellow ground plicata. A wonderful bonus to be able to look down into the flower and see those gorgeous deep orange style arms. Choice!
Sdlg. TO87F: Zig Zag sib X Catch My Eye

LOVER’S GAME (T. Johnson ’25)
SDB Midseason-late 12” (30.5cm) Slight fragrance.
Standards are purple with a blended pink band. Pink ground falls are overlaid violet below the beard, and orange at the hafts. A very cute and colorful iris.
Sdlg. TO71B: Born To Boogie X Wow Gee Whiz sib

TIME BOMB (L. Miller ’25)
TB Early-midseason 37” (94cm) No fragrance.
Peach pink standards rise above white ground falls blushed light yellow in the center, transitioning to red-violet dotting. Finally we finish with a wide dark red-violet band! Quite a striking bicolor plicata, with good garden presence and up to 11 buds!
Sdlg. 918D: Scattergram X She’s A Bimbo

EPILOGUE (P. Black '25)
SDB Early-midseason 13” (33cm) Pronounced sweet fragrance.
Epilogue is another iris people have been waiting for. It is from my long running attempt to put lace on SDBs. The fall edges of this pretty flower are serrated but not truly laced. It seems I may never hit the goal. Light pink standards have light gilt yellow bands. Light pink styles look out over falls having light-mid yellow hafts and wide blended band with pale flesh pink centers.
Sdlg. CC206A: Black Y235E: (Black U159A x V365D: (Acqua Di Rosa x Tic Tac Toe)) X Black AA188B, Low To The Ground sib

LATE TO THE PARTY (P. Black '25)
TB Late-very late 35” (89cm) Slight sweet fragrance.
For those in colder climates and areas subject to late frosts and freezes, a plicata being Late To The Party is a good thing. White standards have wide mid-dark purple plicata banding and sparse dotting over the center. The white of the standards accents the dark purple style arms. White falls have dark plum plicata hafts and narrow light plum plicata bands. The large mid marigold beards are an interesting accent. Overall, a very clean and exciting flower. The ground color and plicata markings are somewhat variable. Two branches plus spur carry 7-8 buds.
Sdlg. BB100C: Black Y53A, Sun Peeking Out sib X Black Z64A, Random Acts Of Kindness sib

PEACH BERRY JUMBLE (P. Black '25)
TB Midseason-late 33” (84cm) No fragrance.
The time of broken colored irises with poor form, stalks, buds, and growth is past. Now is the time to put this colorful beauty in your garden. Standards have mid to dark mulberry segments and streaks, and mid to light peach segments and streaks. Falls have a mid peach ground, white around the beards, and mid to dark mulberry segments, streaks, sanding, and dotting. WOW! What a wild and crazy flower. Vigorous growth produces show stalks with three branches and 8-9 buds.
Sdlg. BB117N: Y87A: (V24C, Cockeyed Optimist sib x W144C: (T46C: (Claim To Fame x Advantage) x T52CR: (N134AAR: (Island Coral x K113A: (Throb x I4B: (Blazing Sunrise x C17D, Vibrant sib))) x Advantage))) X Y115B, Breaking Free sib

CALYPSO JOE (P. Black '25)
TB Midseason-late 33” (84cm) No fragrance.
Imagine loads of sun, sandy beaches, and music with a Latin beat when Calypso Joe appears in his flamboyant attire. The light butter ground of the standards is widely banded dark wine with random plicata marks over their centers. Bright mid yellow falls have dark wine hafts extending beyond the root beer beard and ending in an irregular dart. The plicata markings are wide in upper 1/3 then becoming narrow. Robust growth produces strong stalks with 3 branches and 9-10 buds. Quite a showstopper.
Sdlg. CC68A: Fantasmagorical X Z70H, Capture A Little Sun sib

HIGH ON LIFE (P. Black '25)
TB Midseason-late 33” (84cm) Pronounced sweet fragrance.
Not only does High On Life have gorgeous flowers, but its hallmark is the super strong show branched stalks. Dark lilac standards blend to light silvery lilac margins with neat mauve pink styles peering out. White ground falls are washed light pink overlaid with mid pink texture veins. Coral beards jazz things up. Three to four branches plus spur have 9-11 buds.
Sdlg. BB143N: Gay Romance X Z52D: (V110B: (Fred And Ginger x Go For Broke) x V159I, Pleasure's All Mine sib)

COSMETOLOGIST (Thomas Johnson ’26)
TB Early-midseason 35” (89cm) Sweet fragrance.
This is a plicata pattern that has a lot going on. Standards have a very light lavender ground, with lavender dotting showing in the center, and then becoming a medium lemon band. Falls are a light lavender white ground, with a deep burgundy haft bar, and a faint lilac lavender dotted edge. Even the beard is complex, with a white base and hair tips that change from burgundy to orange as it moves towards the heart of the flower. Cosmetologist comes from a line of plicatas that are not from traditional plicata breeding; they descend from recessive plicatas that appeared in bicolor breeding lines. Very nice form, bud count, and stems. Sdlg. TO237D: For The Ages X Open Flame plicata sibling

DEEP APPRECIATION (Thomas Johnson ’26)
TB Early-midseason 38” (96.5cm) Slight musky fragrance.
Deep black cherry to black standards show a slight bit of yellow ground in the center. Falls have a white ground with a lemon-yellow wash that is dotted deep black cherry, with a dark bar around the beard and line below the beard. The fall then has a wide black cherry band. It differs from its sister ‘Love In The Dark’ in that Deep Appreciation is near black, whereas the former is a very deep oxblood red. Very stunning! Sdlg. TM149QQ: Love In The Dark sibling

SCATTERSHOT DOTS (Paul Black 26)
TB Midseason-late 30” (76cm) Pronounced sweet fragrance.
Here’s another in the limited realm of the strange broken color plicatas. Each flower is patterned differently. Typically marked standards have a light buttercream ground with a dark charcoal-purple wide rib, heavily plicata-sanded center, and wide band. White falls have light yellow variably-sized hafts, irregular broken color segments of wine to purple dotting and sanding, and a narrow dark wine plicata band. Sdlg. EE25A: Black AA84W, Make Up Your Mind X Wild About You

ON THE PROWL (Thomas Johnson ’26)
SDB Midseason-late 13” (33cm) Sweet fragrance.
White ground petals have a lavender lilac plicata dotted band and a belly stripe. Hafts are touched with deep red wine rays. Large, fuzzy beards are yellow-orange. This little iris really stands out in a crowd. Sdlg. TN281A: Penny For Your Thoughts sibling X Talking Back