Iris 'Pumpkin Cheesecake'

Iris 'Pumpkin Cheesecake': Pumpkin Orange Swirled with Cream

Creamy white on top, soft orange below, with bright orange beards. 'Pumpkin Cheesecake' looks like the holiday dessert table, minus your uncle hovering over it with a fork. NO SLICES TAKEN.

Plant Characteristics:

• Botanical Name: Iris (Tall Bearded Group), often sold as Iris germanica
• Common Name: Bearded Iris
• Height: 75 cm (30 in)
• Spread: 40–50 cm (16–20 in)
• Flowers: Creamy white standards, soft orange falls and bright orange beards on large, lightly ruffled blooms
• Bloom Time: Early summer (June to July)
• Foliage: Upright, sword-shaped green leaves in a tidy fan

Where to Plant: Plant it in the middle of a sunny border, where the warm colours glow in late-afternoon light, or in a cottage garden, along a sunny foundation or in a dedicated iris bed. Give it sharp drainage, and cut the long stems for vases.

Companion Plants: Salvia Perpetual Purple™ adds purple flowers at 40 to 45 cm from June into September, a strong contrast to the orange-toned iris. Sedum SunSparkler® 'Plum Dazzled' edges the front at 20 to 23 cm with pink flowers from July into September. Pennisetum Prairie Winds® 'Lemon Squeeze' brings a soft grass texture at 90 to 105 cm from July into October. All three want full sun.

Plant Care: Give it full sun and well-drained soil. Bearded iris rots in soggy ground, so if you garden on heavy clay, plant it in a raised bed or on a slight mound. Set the rhizome so its top sits at or just below the soil surface, and never bury it under mulch. Water through the first season. After that, it handles dry spells well. Snap off the flower stalks at the base once blooming ends. Clean up the old leaves in fall. This removes eggs of the iris borer, a common pest in Ontario and Quebec gardens. Divide the clump every three to five years in mid to late summer, when flowering slows or the centre gets crowded.

History: Tall bearded irises are garden hybrids built from several European and Middle Eastern species, including Iris pallida and Iris variegata, and the genus takes its name from Iris, the Greek goddess of the rainbow. Orange and peach shades like this one are a relatively modern achievement of iris breeders.

Final Thoughts: Deer resistant, drought tolerant once established and easy. Plant a whole tray. THIS DESSERT COMES BACK EVERY YEAR.