COVER OF NIGHT (Paul Black 23)
TB Midseason-Very Late 34” (86cm)
Pronounced sweet fragrance This exciting variety is a clandestine exploration of what takes place at night. Standards have dark violet blue elliptical centers blending to wide dark purple bands underlaid with black veins. Halfmoon white fall centers on black falls are veined overall purple black. Mid gold beards glow in the darkness. White dotted rims encircle these dark beauties. Three branches have 8-9 buds. This cross yielded many superb seedlings to choose from. Sdlg. AA73J, How Bizarre! sib

HOW BIZARRE! (Paul Black 23)
TB Midseason-Very Late 36” (91cm)
Slight musky fragrance My ‘Action Packed’ has given rise to many other excitingly patterned standards and falls like ‘How Bizarre!”. Pale chalky grayed violet elliptical standards centers give way to wide mid tan-gold bands heavily veined and rimmed mid red brown. Velvety purple black falls have white centers heavily veined and sanded dark purple. Old gold beards echo standards color. An easy late show winner with 3 branches and 7 buds. Strong growth and clean disease resistant foliage. Sdlg. AA73A: Laser Light Show X Black X141E: (Black U53D, Rise Like a Phoenix sib x Black U38B, Jungle Mist sib)

MEGA RUFFLES (Paul Black 23)
TB Early-Midseason 30” (76cm)
Slight spicy fragrance If ruffles are your delight, then you’ll be on max overload with this exuberantly ruffled beauty. Light rosy peach standards blend to wide buttery yellow bands. Velvety dark red-grape falls have darker veins and lines overall and are encased in precise, closely packed light rose-pink bands. Tan-gold beards echo the standards color. With so many ruffles, these larger flowers open easily and completely. There are two branches and only 5 buds. Buds open one at a time so each can be fully appreciated and not shorten the bloom time. Fat super ruffled buds are quite fun. Sdlg. AA145A: Autumn Jewel X My Passion

SUNSHINE BOUQUET (Paul Black 23)
TB Midseason-Late 35” (89cm)
Strong sweet fragrance There is nothing that shines in a garden like yellow. This clean as a whistle bright clear yellow glaciata has even more carrying power because of the white patch below yellow beards. If you’re keen to hybridize luminatas, pair this one up with a quality luminata and you should get plenty. Taller and better vigor than many glaciatas. Three branches provide 8 buds. Sdlg. Z61A: All too Exciting X Black V18A: (Rodeo Girl x Black S114MM, Dare Me sib)

DREAM OF DREAMS (Paul Black 23)
SDB Late-Very Late 15” (38cm)
Pronounced sweet fragrance This little jewel represents one more refinement in a many generations quest for late blooming, multi-budded and branched stalks with shorter foliage so all flowers can be seen. I place it close to the top of my breeding accomplishments. Clear mid yellow flowers are born on 2 branches plus spur and 7-8 buds. That sort of stalk and buds would make even a TB proud. Stalks are mid slate purple. Now the challenge is to add more colors and patterns. Imagine the breeding potential represented here. An easy candidate for “Queen of Show”. Sdlg. AA157A: Continuation X Black Y191A, Perfectly Composed sib

SHE’S BEAUTIFUL (Paul Black 23)
TB Midseason-Late 36” (91cm)
Slight sweet fragrance Another project breeders have pursued for many years is putting a pink beard on a blue or purple iris. It seems loads of baby steps still haven’t gotten us there. These icy blue-white blooms coral pink beards. I probably don’t have enough years left to make it to the goal on this one. I’ll have to be content with it in my dreams. Sdlg. Z136A: Black W152A: (Black T80A: Fantasy in Pink x Black Q6A: (Dearie x Drifting Bubbles)) X Fire and Ice

PRINCESS PRETTY PINK (Paul Black 23)
TB Midseason-Late 34” (86.5cm)
Slight musky fragrance This later blooming pink ground plicata avoids the winter damage that plagued so many earlier ones of this type. Ruffled standards are mid pink blending to mid apricot edges. Mid coral styles echo these warmer colors. Light pink falls have white luminata type patches lined mid plum. Narrow ruffled red-plum plicata bands encircle the expansive falls. Coral beards are the perfect accessory. Vigorous growth creates sumptuous clumps filled with show stalks having 3 branches and 8-10 buds. Sdlg. BB149G: Black Y135A: (All too Exciting x Fancy Ideas) X Z100G, Background Noise sib

COMPETITIVE SPIRIT (T. Johnson ’24)
TB Early-midseason 40” (102cm)
Slight fragrance. Creamy white standards. Falls are white with a stitched and dotted blue violet haft and blue band. Beards are burnt orange. Was admired by many at the regional tour this past spring. Tall and strong stems with nicely ruffled flowers. Sdlg. TL45YY: High Desert X Beautician

MOMENT OF REFLECTION (T. Johnson ’24)
Midseason-late 38” (97cm)
Sweet fragrance. Ooh la la is what I say each year when this one starts to flower. Impeccable wide and ruffled form. Not really sure whether to call this a bicolor or a blend. Whatever it is, we like it very much, and we love to hybridize with it. Blended golden orange and salmon standards swirl elegantly above light rosy lavender falls with a peach wash, deeper at the hafts, and lighter as it moves down the petal. Oh, and did we mention it is ruffled? This was a very productive cross and has yielded many intros including last year’s Head Of The Class and Refined Elegance. Sdlg. TK131B: Sweet City Woman X Dressed To The Nines

CRYSTAL MIRROR (Black ’24)
MTB Tet. Early-midseason 24” (61cm)
Spicy fragrance. Loads of sweet orchid and white plicata flowers on well-branched stalks with many buds. Sdlg: AA276E: To The Contrary X Deep In The Heart

SO HAPPY TOGETHER (Black ’24)
TB Midseason-late 35” (89cm)
Musky fragrance. The quest for a TB with blue standards and pink falls has been a long and frustrating road for many hybridizers. Along the way there are beautiful seedlings worthy of introduction, and this is one of those. Larger flowers are carried on sturdy stalks. Notice the peach pink styles peering from between violet-blue standards. Standards are a blended light blue-violet and pink. Falls are blended light orchid pink with a slight buff center stripe below the beard. Sdlg. BB86E: Bubbly Beauty X For Lovers Only

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

BEAUTIFUL MIND (T. Johnson ’25)
TB Early-midseason 39” (99cm) Sweet fragrance.
Standards are a very light creamy yellow with a deep golden yellow center. Falls are creamy white with a nice lavender to violet band. The hafts are also touched a bit with lemon. This strong grower has excellent form and stems with lots of buds. It has been used extensively in hybridizing and has proven to be a quality parent. A standout iris!
Sdlg. TN232ZZ: Coat Of Many Colors X Just Wanting Attention

NEVER ENDING STORY (T. Johnson ’25)
TB Early-midseason 37” (94cm) Slight sweet fragrance.
Very light lemon to cream standards have darker lemon centers. Falls are a deep red violet with a small yellow area around the beard. There is a bit of bluish violet blending below the beard, and a wide heavily ruffled and blended yellow band. Never Ending Story has gorgeous classical form with heavy ruffles on nice stems. A really lovely iris!
Sdlg. TN231A: Coat Of Many Colors X Honor Roll

SHEMOZZLE (T. Johnson ’25)
TB Early-midseason 36” (91.5cm) Sweet fragrance.
Lemon yellow standards rise above very complex patterned falls. There is a yellow flash around the beard, then a reddish band at the haft that becomes a blue violet wash. The pattern then transitions to a lavender band, and finally a lemon band. Quite a busy little thing, but also very showy. Gorgeous ruffled form and nice stems are the norm.
Sdlg. TN231C: Coat Of Many Colors X Honor Roll

DARK EYED LASS (P. Black '25)
SDB Early-midseason 10” (25.5cm) Pronounced sweet fragrance.
Here it is, the one many of you have been asking about since I first posted its picture on FB. I’m also in love with it. It is one of those irises where everything works together to make a stunning creation. Light yellow standard centers blend to wide stark white bands. Irregularly edged big brown-black fall spots transition to wide white bands, including a white dart up their distal center. A nest of white darts encircles white beards. OH MY!
Sdlg. DD163A: BB248A, Touch Of Turquoise sib X Zaa Zaa Zing

JUST FOR JACKIE (P. Black '25)
TB Midseason-late 33” (84cm) Slight sweet fragrance.
Jackie is one of my best friends. She has always been a big help by leaving pink post-it notes on seedlings she thinks I should keep. We’ve had many good laughs together. She also insists on helping me plant my iris seeds each fall. Of course I wouldn’t hurt her feelings by saying no. She makes it all fun. She likes brown irises, so for her here is a white and dark red-brown plicata. Note the pronounced lines in the falls. Strong stalks have three branches and 8-9 buds. This is one of many exceptional seedlings coming from Crocodile Smile.
Sdlg. BB106C: Crocodile Smile X Z100D, Background Noise sib

BLUEPRINT FOR SPRING (P. Black '25)
TB Midseason-late 36” (91.5cm) Slight sweet fragrance.
What makes this light blue bitone with falls veined darker mid-blue special? I think it is the best attempt so far to put a pink beard on a blue iris. It has been a challenge for many hybridizers. Its other special feature is the clumps filled with bloom stalks creating an overpowering display of color in the garden. To say it is floriferous is an understatement, and yet, there is plenty of increase left.
Sdlg. BB157O: Y168A: (V159M, Pleasure's All Mine sib x W113A: (S157I, Reflections Of Love sib x Multnomah Falls)) X Z114B: (V159Q, Pleasure’s All Mine sib x V159O, Pleasure’s All Mine sib)