GHOSTLY APPARITION (P. Black '25)
SDB Midseason-late 13” (33cm) Slight musky fragrance.
It is similar to the tall bearded ‘ghost plicatas’. White standards have wide mid blue-violet plicata bands and random dotting over centers. White ground falls have mid blue-violet plicata hafts, variable light blue-violet distal wash, and narrow mid blue-violet stitched band. Fascinating beards are half tangerine and white.
Sdlg. DD154D: X252A: (Love Spell x V322A, Jolly pollen parent) X Y263A: (New Release x W218C, Flirtin' Skirts sib)

PLAY WITH ZEBRAS (P. Black '25)
TB Midseason-late 34” (86.5cm) Pronounced musky fragrance.
Talk about a zebra of a different stripe. This is one of the few broken color plicatas, and one with sterling plant habits and superbly formed flowers. White standards have a wide dark purple plicata band and closely spaced dotting over the center. Wide and ruffled falls are white with dark purple broken color segments, streaks, dotting, and sanding. Show stalks have three branches and 7-8 buds. I’m working on zebras in other colors now. What a fun project this is!
Sdlg. AA84N: Come And Dance X Starry Starry Night

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

ALL ABOUT COLOR (P. Black '25)
TB Midseason-late 34” (86.5cm) Slight sweet fragrance.
The warm yellow color of the standards calms the eye, while the violet and maroon blended and streaked falls banded with tan push toward party time. Strong growth creates clumps filled with eye-catching flowers. Weather resistant stalks have 3 branches plus spur and 8-9 buds.
Sdlg. BB103N: Y54E: (U14A: (Dog Days x R133A: (O159B: (Out Of The Dark x Sea Power) x P75B: (L83D, Magic Masquerade sib x Cheap Frills))) x W10A: (Dog Days x Hidden Innocence)) X Z139: (V89: (unknown x Hotsy Totsy) x Hotsy Totsy)

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

BOUNCING BLUE BETTY (P. Black '25)
TB Midseason-late 34” (86.5cm) Slight spicy fragrance.
I’ll leave it to you to figure out which Betty and where the bounce is. Is it in her footsteps? She is elegantly appealing. Ruffled icy white standards echo the interesting white falls that are delicately washed pale blue to several shades darker toward their edges. Statuesque stalks can have 4 branches with 11-12 buds. Put some bounce in your garden.
Sdlg. CC76A: Z40B: (V67A: (R72A: (Fancy Dog x M80CC: (First Page x Man About Town)) x Blueberry Parfait) x V191D: (R174B: (Frontline x Bluebird Of Happiness) x Dancing Star)) X X1A: (Adriatic Waves x All Ashore)

DEVIL IN DISGUISE (P. Black '25)
TB Midseason-late 34” (86.5cm) Slight sweet fragrance.
The disguise is a brilliant success. Who’d expect anything evil about this lavish blending of dark to mid purples adorned with an angelic near white beard. Super wide falls with lightly ruffled edges allow an unobstructed display of its alluring color. Minimal plicata marking of the standards at the midrib hint at its plicata heritage. Three well-spaced branches carry 9-10 buds.
Sdlg. DD62A: AA78B, Misplaced Dots sib X Awash In Purple

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

GUESS WHAT (Thomas Johnson ’26)
TB Early-midseason 37” (94cm) Slight fragrance.
Icy blue white standards sit atop white falls with a wide lilac blue stitched and dotted band. Beards are red. Guess What is a very strong grower and prolific bloomer. Well-formed flowers are carried on beautifully branched and budded stems. Really a gorgeous bloom, with the overall effect being a blue plicata with a red beard. Parentage is unknown, due to mixed cross tags.

GOT STYLE (Thomas Johnson ’26)
SDB Early-midseason 12” (30.5cm) Slight fragrance.
The really round and ruffled form catches the eye on this cute little yellow and white plicata with random purple stitching and dotting. Sdlg. TN280B: Curly Fries sibling X Tula

CASTLES IN THE SKY (Paul Black 26)
TB Late-very late 33” (84cm) Slight musky fragrance.
White standards have a wide luminous light cornflower blue plicata banding. Broad white falls are boldly framed with a narrow mid violet-blue plicata band and dramatic solid hafts. Mid blue beards are a subtle complement. Robust, winter-hardy plants produce strong show stalks, having 3 branches plus spur and 9-10 buds. Purple based blue-green foliage adds disease resistance. Stands out even from a distance. Sdlg. CC109A: Black Z100H, Background Noise sibling X Black AA45A: (Rumor Has It x Me And My Shadow)

INNER DESIRE (Paul Black 26)
TB Early-midseason 32” (81.5cm) No fragrance.
This intensely saturated jewel will captivate your heart. The interior of dark red-grape standards is white with wide plicata banding of mid red-grape. The falls have a mid blue-purple area surrounding mid tangerine beards, that first transitions to a wide, warm white, heavily plicata-marked band, before ending in a wide, rich wine-magenta band. Its unique color will draw you in for a closer look. Well-branched stalks have 4 branches and 7-8 buds. Unusual buds (fall reverse) are greenish cream heavily dotted mid grape. Another wonderful and unique iris coming from ‘Crocodile Smile’. Sdlg. BB107G: Black Y55B, Crocodile Smile sibling X Crocodile Smile

MAGICAL FANTASY (Paul Black 26)
TB Late-very late 34” (86.5cm) No fragrance.
Mid pink standards are washed light mauve. Delicately ruffled palest pink tinted falls have narrow mid violet-blue plicata banding. Its dark orange beard ends in a near black dart. Moderately sized flowers displayed on graceful taller stems make a visually pleasing clump. Vigorous growth produces show stalks with 4 branches and 7-8 buds. Sdlg. EE84A: Black BB164B: (Daffy Duck x Me And My Shadow) X Black BB150C: (Black Y152B: (Dearest x Black 30A: (Fantasy In Pink x Black T123B: (Dog Days x R22D: (Lecture x Black O159B: (Out Of The Dark x Sea Power))))) x Z99D:(Steal Your Heart x unknown))

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

CANDY BEARD (Paul Black 26)
MTB Midseason-late 26” (66cm) Slight sweet fragrance.
Oh yes, these beards are good enough to eat. Mid pink styles peer from between mid-light blue-pink standards. White falls have wide rosy pink plicata banding, lines and dotting over the center. Makes a very colorful clump. Well-branched stalks have 3 branches and 7-8 buds. Sdlg. EE181A: Bright Victory X Candy Tycoon

SORCERER’S SPELL (Paul Black 26)
IB Early-midseason 22” (56cm) Pronounced sweet fragrance.
Beware of the dark side lurking here. Mid red-purple standards blend lighter toward their edge. Open standards reveal showy rose and gold styles. Velvety dark purple falls shade to near black margins. The light tangerine over white beard rests in a white luminata plicata patch. There are sometimes random white streaks and splashes. Use it to create IB and BB broken color flowers. Three branches carry 8-9 buds. Sdlg. EE86A: Nickel’s Worth X Lumistreak

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

SING SOFTLY (Thomas Johnson ’26)
SDB Midseason-late 13” (33cm) Sweet fragrance.
Light pink standards rise above white falls with a heavy stitched and dotted red violet haft and wide dotted edge. Coral orange beards draw you in. A very distinctive and different plicata. Sdlg. TP289A: Catch My Eye X Tula

SUNSHINE BLUES (Thomas Johnson ’26)
SDB Midseason-late 14” (35.5cm) Light fragrance.
White ground petals have a lemon plicata overlay on both standards and falls. There are also a few faint lilac plicata dots throughout the flower. A very large deep blue beard certainly makes the whole flower pop. A unique pattern and color combination. Sdlg. TO75D: Believe X Cheers To You

LOVER’S TOUCH (Thomas Johnson ’26)
TB Early-midseason 39” (99cm) Sweet fragrance.
Standards have a medium blue pink center becoming lighter towards the edge. Falls are lavender white with a dotted blue lavender plicata edge with pink undertones. Beards are a mixture of orange, lavender and white, adding another dimension in this very pleasing and warm color combination. Really a very beautiful and elegant iris, that has lots of buds on nice show stems. Parentage is unknown.