Douglas Iris

Scientific Name: 

Iris douglasiana

Physical Appearance: 

• The leaves are thin and form into a spear 

• The flowers have large, delicate, and extremely thin petals 

• Petals range from blue, purples to creamy, yellows and reds

When Does It Grow: 

• Spring time, baby 

Preferred Environment: 

• Low elevations 

• Near coast lines in grasslands 

• In damp to wet areas with low hanging fog

• Moisture in the air crucial 

Method of Reproduction: 

• Its rhizomes (which are like underground, horizontal stems) grow nodes which store water and food in order to sprout roots for a new plant

• Most of the plants are bisexual meaning that they have both male and female reproductive parts

Medicinal Uses: 

• Iris have been used to help treat infected wounds and ulcers

• Roots can be dried and boiled to make a tea that can treat kidney troubles 

• The Yana tribe is said to have chewed iris roots to cure coughs and the Modoc used roots to treat eye soreness

• Roots were burned and the smoke was inhaled to treat dizziness go 

Role in the Ecosystem: 

• Douglas iris, while pretty, is considered a harmful weed in some contexts such as pastures as their leaves are bitter and unpalatable for wildlife

Random: 

• The genus name is greek for rainbow, it alludes to the different colors that the flower could be… I’m not sure about you, but that’s pretty cute

• In greek mythology, Iris is the goddess of the rainbow! 

• Native Americans are known to have used the seeds to make flour 

• Have you ever seen a white Douglas Iris growing in the wild? Probably not as it is a recessive gene and most irises now are hybrids