DARE TO BE DIFFERENT (Thomas Johnson ’22)
TB Midseason 36” (91cm)
Slight fragrance. Rich butter yellow standards. Falls have a light creamy yellow base that is a near solid patch in center becoming a lined and rayed pattern that is overlaid mid to deep violet, then the petals are etched light yellow with a purple wire rim. Nicely ruffled and pleated flowers are extremely bright and showy. Quite a unique application of color and pattern. Lovely show stems and good bud count assure it to be a contender on the show bench. A favorite since its maiden bloom.
Sdlg TK170A: Dressed To The Nines X Disco Lights.

FLAME STITCH (Thomas Johnson ’22)
TB Midseason 36” (91cm)
Sweet fragrance. Brilliant golden yellow standards are edged with a unique rust veined pattern. Rich and plush mahogany red falls have a yellow central sunburst pattern with red lines radiating throughout. Strong growth with nice show stalks carrying 8 or more buds. Quite a dramatic looking iris in the field.
Sdlg TK184: ((Reckless Abandon) x Stole The Show) X ((( Blyth S292: Catwalk x (Chestnuts Roasting) x Blyth S278A: (Dragon Dance sib x Strawberry Spy))) x Reckless Abandon))

PURE INTENTIONS (Thomas Johnson ’22)
TB Midseason 36” (91cm) Slight fragrance. White standards have a narrow gold halo that is matched on the style crests. Falls are white with a violet plicata stitched edge. Beards mustard- yellow, more tangerine in the throat. An excellent grower with strong show stems carrying 10 buds. Nice ruffled, wide and overlapping form adds to the show. Gives a very clean and sharp look to the garden.
Sdlg TK185A: TH19C:(Reckless Abandon x Stole The Show) X Beautician.

RUNAROUND (Thomas Johnson ’22)
TB Early-Midseason-Late 37” (94cm)
No fragrance. Peach and cream blended standards. White falls with a wide red violet plicata band and thin belly stripe that extends from below the beard to distal end. Nice classic rounded form shows off the deeply contrasting dark mustard yellow style arms, creating quite a dramatic look. Strong growth and show stems with loads of buds allows for a very long season of bloom. A very good and showy garden iris.
Sdlg TJ154ZZ: sib to Marry the Night X (Petticoat Shuffle x ((( Silk Brocade x Epicenter) x Keppel 98-204A: sib to Tunnel Vision pod parent) x (High Master x (Silk Brocade x Epicenter))))

TURN BACK TIME (T. Johnson ’22)
TB Midseason 40” (102cm)
Sweet fragrance. Standards have a cream ground that is almost completely overlaid with gold and a crystalline white petal edge. Falls are white with a lilac blue plicata band and dotted bar on either side of the beard. I simply love this iris. The color combination is so unique and carries the wow factor when in flower. Tall well branched stalks beckon to you from across the garden.
Sdlg TK101A: (Petticoat Shuffle x (sib to Hysteria x Danger Money)) X Beautician

BUSY AS A BEE (Paul Black '22)
SDB Late-Very Late 15” (38cm)
Pronounced sweet fragrance It is a crazy quilt of plicata color and pattern. Butter standard centers have slate violet plic dotting and blend to wide brass-gold bands. Yellow to cream falls have descending plic marks of rust, garnet and light violet then banded brass gold.
Sdlg. I Go Crazy X Crack Me Up

BACKGROUND NOISE (Paul Black '22)
TB Late-Very Late 34” (86cm)
Pronounced sweet fragrance Two of this year’s introductions are from this cross that produced many delightful seedlings. ‘Me and My Shadow’ has proven to be a solid parent for quality later blooming hardy plicatas. Light blending to dark butterscotch standards have fine darker caramel veining. Styles are darker butterscotch with styles veined brown. Crisp white falls are decorated with wide dark burgundy plicata bands while near black irregular lines descend part way down their centers. Three well-spaced branches carry 7-8 buds. A vigorous and hardy plicata.
Sdlg. Z100I: Me and My Shadow X First Pick

CROCODILE SMILE (Paul Black '22)
TB Late-Very Late 35” (89cm)
Pronounced sweet fragrance If I could have only one of my plicatas to breed with, it would be this one. Its genetic diversity, including several instances of ‘Dolce’ plus SDBs, IBs, tet MTBs, BBs and TBs, has given rise to unique colors and patterns in addition to solid growth. White ground standards are washed pale mustard becoming darker toward edges then embellished with darker mustard fine veining overall and white edges. Yellow styles are held within strongly held standards. Expansive white ground falls are widely plicata banded dark olive gold with more olive random dotting and line down centers, over centers and haft. Unique olive gold beards complete this unusual creature. Three branches have 7-8 buds.
Sdlg. Y55A: Black U14A, Drag Race pod parent X Black W191A, Black Label pollen parent

EXPANDING UNIVERSE (Paul Black '22)
TB Midseason-Late 35” (89cm)
Slight sweet fragrance. This cross is another that yielded many quality seedlings from which choices had to be made as to what goes and what stays. Big broad and heavily ruffled flowers are presented on strong show stalks. Standards have wide purple black plicata bands and only centers show their white ground. Styles are near black. Super wide falls are warm white shaded buff over hafts. Dark purple plicata bands encircle the falls and unusual waxy black chevrons surround rich dark black-brown beards. Strong show stalks have 3 branches and spur to show of 10-12 buds. A must have.
Sdlg. Z74H: Goat Rodeo sib

ROAD RAGE (T. Johnson ’23)
Early 13” (33cm)
Sweet fragrance. Brilliant gold standards. Falls have medium gold ground with a heavily dotted and stitched red violet plicata haft and narrow petal edge. Huge near red beards are intensely saturated. Fantastic wide, round, and ruffled form on nice stems carrying three buds. Sdlg. TL298B: Alaia X Twitter Bug.

SWEET BABY JANE (T. Johnson ’23)
SDB Early 11” (28cm)
Musky fragrance. Brilliant gold standards with maroon infusions in the centers. Falls have a canary yellow ground with a near solid wide deep wine plicata band and random dots and stripes below the orange beards. Sdlg. TL299B: Lava Burst sib.

CATCH PHRASE (T. Johnson ’23)
TB Early-midseason 36” (91.5cm)
Sweet fragrance. Icy blue white standards with green veins in the center. Falls are white with a lavender rim. Inside the rim are random violet dots. The hafts have deep violet lines and there is a center line of violet below the beard. Beards are white with orange hair tips. A beautiful take on a purple and white plicata. An easy grower with show stems and gorgeous form. We like! Sdlg. TL46A: High Desert X Mixed Feelings.

FINAL ANSWER (T. Johnson ’23)
TB Late 36” (91.5cm)
Sweet fragrance. Medium flesh pink standards have lavender violet centers. Falls are a rich lavender violet with flesh pink touched hafts. Beards are tangerine, tipped lavender. Final Answer has been an absolute favorite since its maiden bloom. Gorgeous wide, ruffled, and heavily laced form, on Impeccably branched and budded show stems, ensures a long bloom season. This is an iris for the more northerly gardens with its lateness it is sure to avoid any damage from late freezes. It is an amazingly fertile parent, setting pods easily. An absolute must have! Sdlg. TJ119YY: Catch My Breath X Dancing Days.

INTENSE REACTION (T. Johnson ’23)
TB Early-midseason 36” (91.5cm)
Sweet fragrance. Honey-gold and lavender-pink blended standards are more gold at the edges. Falls are white with a deep red violet band. Beards are orange with a medium lavender tip. Below the tip of the beard is a medium lavender dart. Quite an intense color combination on a unique plicata. Sdlg. TK118ZZ: Castle On The Hill sib

LOVELY LIVVY (T. Johnson ’23)
TB early-midseason 35” (89cm)
Lightly scented. LOVELY LIVVY (T. Johnson ’23) TB early-midseason 35” (89cm) Lightly scented. This gorgeous iris is named to honor the late great Olivia Newton-John. Olivia was not only a very talented celebrity but she was a gorgeous human being. Although I never met her, I certainly followed her career and life. Always a kind, warm and loving person, she never acted the celebrity, taking time to acknowledge all who came upon her. She courageously fought breast cancer in an out of remission for 20 years. Never one to complain she always looked on the positive side of things. The latter part of her life was dedicated to finding a cure for Cancer. She founded the Oliva Newton-John Cancer And Wellness Centre In Melbourne, Australia, the country she called home. Here she tirelessly raised money to support cancer research using plant-based treatments. Lovely Livvy was the pet name the media used throughout Olivia’s life to describe her. The iris we have chosen to honor her kind of named itself. Firstly, it is pink, the color of breast cancer awareness. On top of that, I made the cross in the garden of Barry and Lesley Blyth (using two of Barry’s seedlings), who live only miles from where Olivia grew up. Lovely Livvy is an extraordinary and unique creation in a color combination that has not yet been seen in iris until now. White standards are flushed pink. Falls are a deeper rose pink with a gorgeous ruffled white band. Olivia with her kind and generous heart inspired me to do my part, so I donated a portion of the proceeds of each plant sold in its introductory year (2023) to her Cancer research centre in Australia. Sdlg. TJ335B: X267-12 (U232-1: (S290-3: Raise the Curtain x Another Woman) x (S69-1: (02-185c: Restless Heart x Queen’s Circle) x (02-191B: Tour De France x Rippling River))) x Bashful Love. X Walk Right Back pod parent.

PROPENSITY (T. Johnson ’23)
TB Midseason-late 36” (91.5cm)
Light sweet fragrance. Milky white standards are flushed light lemon in the center and at the petal edges. Falls are a rich lavender violet overlaid with a deep red violet spot that blends out to a light flesh pink edge. I have a bit of a soft spot for this sort of pattern and the application of the color is so good on Propensity. It doesn’t hurt that it has beautiful wide ruffled form on nice stems either. Sdlg. TL40C: Espionage X Dressed To The Nines.

RUNNING IN CIRCLES (T. Johnson ’23)
TB Midseason 36” (91.5cm)
Sweet fragrance. One of our favorite intros for this year and that is saying a lot with its competition and the fact that it is a plicata. The color on this is hard to convey in a picture as the presence it has in the garden. It is simply spectacular in clump with its extremely bright color and sharp pattern. Standards are icy white with a near solid overlay of blue lilac. The falls are white with a blue haft, center dart below beard, and band. Even the beard is tipped in blue. Gorgeous, wide, and ruffled form make it irresistible. Running In Circles has also been admired by garden visitors. Recommended! you won’t be sorry! Sdlg. TL180G: ((Ink Patterns x pollen parent of Counting Stars) X (pod parent of Say It Right x Marry The Night sib))

SECRET CHORD (T. Johnson ’23)
TB Midseason 35” (89cm)
Light fragrance. The color of Secret Chord is hard to describe but here we go. Standards have a brassy gold base then they are washed and dotted mulberry in the center finally forming a brass band. Falls are creamy white with deep violet on either side of, (and forming a dart just below), the beard. There is a deep mulberry red fall band with purple violet dots inside the band. All in all it makes for a very startling color combo. Combine all that with wide heavily ruffled form and you have a grand garden iris. We have used Secret Chord heavily in our breeding program. It has proven to be a great parent for form and deep patterned plicatas. Sdlg. TK211ZZ: Be Not Afraid sib

SUAVE AND SOPHISTICATED (T. Johnson ’23)
TB Midseason-late 36” (91.5cm)
Lightly scented. Golden yellow standards are shot light violet at the midrib. Falls are deep burgundy black with purple tones and a gold edge. A very sharp and clean bicolor coming from two great iris. Sdlg. TK3A: Barbara Rider X Espionage.

UNDER PRESSURE (T. Johnson ’23)
TB Midseason 36” (91.5cm)
Sweet fragrance. Under Pressure is another iris that was labeled as an intro from maiden bloom. It never ceases to perform and has good stems and buds as well. Bright yellow standards. The falls are a bit complicated. There is a yellow sunburst in the center that is bordered with a diffused wash of red violet. Then the violet transitions to lavender and finally a very light yellow rim with a violet wire edge. Sdlg. TK170C: Dare To Be Different and This Is Crazy sib.