Iris Princesse Caroline de Monaco - Tall Bearded Iris

Iris 'Princess Caroline of Monaco' (TB) is an excellent variety of tall garden iris, unmatched for the purity of its sky blue colour, without any trace of purple, beautifully enhanced by a sparkling mandarin orange beard. Each well-branched stem bears numerous buds, ensuring a long flowering period. The plant, with its excellent vigour, quickly forms beautiful clumps that will bloom early in the Iris season, in borders and rock gardens. Its heavenly flowers, with a pleasant sweet floral fragrance, are also stunning in bouquets.

Iris 'Princess Caroline of Monaco' is a perennial rhizomatous plant that develops in elegant deciduous clumps from spring. It belongs to the Iridaceae family. It is one of the many cultivars obtained over centuries, whose controversial origin is debated around the number of chromosomes of potential ancestors. It is worth noting that Garden Irises have European origins. They are plants that thrive in chalky soils and crave sunlight, with their rhizomes needing to "bake" in summer to be able to flower. A minimum of 6 hours of sunlight per day is generally required.

'Princess Caroline of Monaco' will reach a height of 85-90 cm (34-35in) when in bloom, with many buds per stem. The clump will spread indefinitely over time, with the central rhizomes becoming less dense in favour of the outer rhizomes. The foliage consists of long and wide sword-shaped, slightly glaucous green leaves, with parallel veins. Floral stems appear in April and bloom from the top to the lower branches in early May. The sky blue of the flower is almost uniform, with a slightly paler area surrounding the mandarin beard on the sepals. The colour of this plant is enhanced by the thick and iridescent texture of the upright petals and the drooping sepals. It is accompanied by a very pleasant fragrance.

Obtained by Cayeux in 1998

Awarded 4th place at the 1998 American Convention and 4th place in Florence in 1998.

To accompany irises, choose plants based on their needs (exposure, soil...), their growth (low plants or light foliage), their decorative appearance and flowering time. For example, Gaura plants provide little shade to irises and keep the flower bed attractive throughout summer. Eschscholzia plants, like irises, thrive in dry and poor soil. Geraniums, salvias, and Libertia also go well with irises. Slopes and terraced edges can be stabilized by dense plantings of vigorous old varieties that require little care. If the goal is more decorative and there is access for care, modern varieties can be chosen, such as intermediates, which are often very floriferous and less likely to be toppled by wind or rain.

When planting at the base of a wall, the relative shelter from the wind allows for the use of tall irises. Of course, shorter and early-blooming varieties can be planted in the foreground.

Path borders are the realm of dwarf irises less than 40 cm (16in) tall, up to intermediates (in size and earliness) and border irises, which are of medium size but bloom alongside tall irises.

Flower bed borders are the domain of border irises, but also of dwarfs, depending on the circumstances.

In mixed borders, the entire range of sizes can be used, depending on the position (foreground, background) and the size of the surrounding plants.

An iris bed or iris garden, is a paradise for iris enthusiasts, where the choice of varieties reflects personal taste. The use of a complete range of bearded irises allows for two and a half months of flowers in spring. The choice of reblooming irises offers some additional flowers in late summer or autumn, depending on the climate.

The vegetable garden can be adorned with a few clumps or borders of irises for cutting.