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Iris germanica Jive - Bearded Iris

Iris germanica Jive
Bearded Iris

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This 31 cm tall Lilliput iris combines shades of golden apricot, raspberry and brick red on its richly coloured flower. Very early for a small bearded iris, it enlivens rock gardens and borders from April.
Height at maturity
31 cm
Spread at maturity
25 cm
Exposure
Sun
Hardiness
Hardy down to -15°C
Soil moisture
Dry soil, Moist soil
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Best planting time August to September
Recommended planting time February to March, July to October
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Flowering time April
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Description

Iris 'Jive' is a Lilliput iris with a golden apricot colour enhanced by a large raspberry spot on the sepals and by brick-red beards. Its flower has something dancing, warm and spicy about it. Not very tall, it easily slips between stones, over a low wall or in a low border. Its early flowering kicks off the dwarf iris season.

'Jive' belongs to the Lilliput irises, those small irises officially classified among the standard dwarf bearded irises. This category includes low-growing varieties, slightly taller than miniature irises but stockier than intermediate irises. 'Jive' reaches 30 to 31 cm in flower. The plant forms a compact clump of glaucous green leaves, narrow and upright, from fleshy rhizomes partially visible at the soil surface. Its clump gradually expands after a few years. In 'Jive', the upright petals display a warm golden apricot colour, slightly tinged with peach. The sepals take up this apricot background, but they bear a large raspberry to bordeaux spot, very round. The style arms, at the heart of the flower, are apricot with a slightly more pinkish midrib. The beards, at the base of the sepals, are a deep brick-red. This variety flowers in April, or even May in the coolest regions.

'Jive' is an American introduction from Keith Keppel, registered and introduced in 2002 under the seedling number 97‑33A. It comes from a seedling from 'Spring Fresh' × 'Pele', crossed with 'Marksman'. It received an Honorable Mention from the American Iris Society in 2004.

To accompany this little iris 'Jive', choose plants that don't shade it and won't risk colonising its rhizomes. Pale blues, whites and silver‑grey foliage suit it very well. It can be paired with Iris pumila ‘Blue Denim’, Muscari armeniacum ‘Valerie Finnis’, Anthericum liliago and the perennial flax Linum perenne. The bulbs disappear at the end of spring, while the Anthericum and flax form light clumps and flower in summer.

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Garden iris, bearded iris: planting, care
Family sheet
by Virginie T. 13 min.
Garden iris, bearded iris: planting, care
Read article

Flowering

Flower colour orange
Flowering time April
Inflorescence Cluster

Foliage

Foliage persistence Semi-evergreen
Foliage colour medium green

Plant habit

Height at maturity 31 cm
Spread at maturity 25 cm
Growth rate normal

Botanical data

Genus

Iris

Species

germanica

Cultivar

Jive

Family

Iridaceae

Other common names

Bearded Iris

Origin

Cultivar or hybrid

Product reference26097

Planting and care

The Iris ‘Jive’ can be planted from July to October as a rhizome, or in spring and autumn for potted plants, outside periods of frost. Plant it in full sun, in soil loosened to a depth of 20 cm, with gravel if the soil retains water in winter. Place the rhizome almost at the surface, with roots spread out in the soil; its top must remain visible. Water well at planting time, then only during dry periods for the first few weeks. A light application of mature compost around the clump is sufficient in poor soil. Divide the clumps every three or four years, in summer, when flowering decreases at the centre of the stump.

Planting period

Best planting time August to September
Recommended planting time February to March, July to October

Intended location

Suitable for Meadow, Rockery
Type of use Edge of border, Slope
Hardiness Hardy down to -15°C (USDA zone 7b) Show map
Ease of cultivation Amateur
Planting density 10 per m2
Exposure Sun
Soil pH Neutral, Calcareous
Soil type Chalky (poor, alkaline and well-drained), Silty-loamy (rich and light), Stony (poor and well-drained)
Soil moisture Dry soil, Moist soil Well-drained soil

Care

Pruning instructions Cut the flower stems at the end of flowering.
Pruning Pruning recommended once a year
Pruning time May
Disease resistance Good
Overwinter Can be left in the ground

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