Clarence Mahan
When I began my iris education and read in old British Iris Society Year Books about the great iris displays put on by great nurserymen of the past, such as Robert Wallace and Amos Perry, it gave to me a great desire to someday see the Chelsea Flower Show. Last year I finally got to Chelsea. Whatever one reads or hears about Chelsea, it is understatement. Acres of flowers, myriad displays of every possible type, plants both common and exotic grown to standards far beyond anything imaginable--these are some of the delights that await at Chelsea. No gardener should die without going to Chelsea at least once.
There were irises in a number of displays and model gardens last year. Claire Austin and Kelways Nursery had exhibits that included quite a few irises and some beautiful peonies. There was, however, only one very large display devoted to irises. This was the display of Croftway Nursery. It was manned by Graham and Tim Spencer, the sons of Croftway's proprietors, Malcolm and June Spencer. Many North American irisarians "know" Graham from the Internet's iris list. That is where I first encountered Graham and his wit. I had expected him to be a somewhat older man, possibly a bit overweight and having a diminished hair line. In short, I had expected him to be a bit like myself. He is, in fact, a young, handsome bachelor who possesses considerable personal charm.
What a display of irises Graham and Tim presented to the public! There were scores of different tall bearded iris cultivars on display. And there were twenty-five bloom stalks of each cultivar. The irises were cut the Saturday before the show and put into large buckets with wire meshes and sand to hold the stems. Each bucket was partially filled with water. The buckets were loaded onto a 7.5 ton lorry. Graham drove the lorry 75 miles to Chelsea. (I cannot even imagine driving a lorry over the narrow English roads--I had more than ample challenge in a small rented compact car.) Graham and Tim assisted their father Malcolm set up the iris exhibit on Sunday. (Meanwhile, "mum", i.e. June Spencer, having prepared packed lunches for her men, single-handedly ran the nursery back home!) Judged on Monday, it received a Bronze Medal. Monday at Chelsea is for the press, the Royal family, and a gala attended by the elite of British society.
Graham tells me that when Tuesday arrived he and Tim were already exhausted. Tuesday is the first day for Royal Horticultural Society members to attend. The show is open from 8 am to 8 pm, and the display must be manned at all times to answer questions of the public. Graham and Tim would stagger back to their "bed and breakfast" at night, but in what seemed like no time at all it was back to the show in the morning. Graham had to go back to the nursery on Thursday night to get the lorry.
The show ends when the bell rings at 5 pm on Friday. Graham says it is then that "mayhem ensues." People try to buy the items that have been on display, and most stands sell their plants and flowers. Croftway gives away its flowers because irises are not exactly at their best after 7 days on display. (Actually, Graham said he gave the flowers to the prettiest ladies--and, knowing Graham, I suspect he is telling the truth.) The vases were packed into boxes, along with extra catalogues and other equipment. Graham had to wait in a queue of vans waiting to get back in--this year it took two hours, which is quicker than normal. The boxes were packed into the lorry, and the Spencers headed home.
I say three cheers for the Spencer family for keeping up the time-honored tradition of iris displays at Chelsea. Croftway Nursery is located in Barnham, West Sussex, England. Before the Spencer family bought it ten years ago it was in operation as F. Toynbee, Ltd., with a reputation as one of England's leading nurseries. Croftway specializes in irises and hardy geraniums. They are currently growing about thirty-five thousand irises. Last year their catalogue listed nearly one hundred and fifty iris cultivars, and that number increases every year. Croftway has a collection of nearly one hundred fifty hardy geraniums, and lists about one hundred of these. They are now growing more than 10,000 geranium plants each year.
Up until now, Croftway has limited sales to Great Britain and other European countries. They are considering plans to offer catalogue sales to North America in the future. This would be a great boon for those of us who have had some difficulty obtaining irises from England in the past. Some irises that have been fairly hard to get from Europe are various species, historic cultivars and many cultivars hybridized by amateur British iris breeders. (I do not even mention hard to obtain hardy geraniums, a fairly new love affair I have begun.)
If you are interested in learning more about Croftway, their web page is <http://members.aol.com/croftway/>. Send them an email and tell them to keep up the good work of educating the public on irises at the Chelsea Flower Show.
One of the most prestigious honors in the iris world is the Foster Memorial Plaque, an award of the British Iris Society. Instituted in memory of Sir Michael Foster, it is reserved for individuals of any nationality who make substantial contributions to the advancement of the genus Iris. The many admirers and friends of Anne Blanco White will be pleased to learn that she was chosen to receive the Foster Memorial Plaque in 1997.
A Guide to the Species Irises (Cambridge, 1997) has as its editor "The Species Group of the British Iris Society," but it is well known that the driving force to get the book published was Anne Blanco White. This was just the latest contribution Anne has made to the advancement of irises. She served as President of the British Iris Society from 1983 to 1986, and from 1989 to 1991, having earlier served as Secretary of that society for ten years. For many years she has operated the publicity stand at British Iris Society shows and organized and run a special iris display at the Royal Horticultural Society Hall each November.
All who know Anne Blanco White are admirers of her knowledge, dedication and abilities. Peter Maynard has written that "her sense of humour is an acquired taste, but well worth the cultivation." I am not sure I totally agree with this as I have always taken great delight in her sense of humor. In any event I am confident that her many friends and admirers in North America join me in saying: "Congratulations, Anne!"
As a related item, Bulletin readers might be interested to know that there are five living Americans who have been honored by the British Iris Society with the award of the Foster Memorial Plaque. These most deserving honorees and the years of their award are: Robert Schreiner (1963), Dr. Currier McEwen (1978), Ben Hager (1981), Keith Keppel (1993), and Bennett Jones (1995).
A small paperback book with stiff covers adorned with a beautiful close-up picture of a form of Iris germanica, the new l' ABCdaire des Iris (Paris, 1997) is a superbly executed handbook on irises. It is, of course, written in French. The authors are Philippe Bonduel, a noted writer on horticultural subjects; Maurice Boussard, distinguished biologist and authority on irises; and Richard Cayeux, whose knowledge of irises and rich iris heritage are well known in North America. Although only 120 pages in length, it covers all the essentials, and much more. It is a quality work, elegantly written and elegantly presented.
One need not know a word of French to enjoy this small book, and I recommend it to anyone who loves irises. The graphics are excellent. The photographs alone make it worth having, and the reproductions of great works of art with iris representations or concerning subjects related to irises make it an invaluable addition to one's iris library. Here you will find Monet's Le jardin de l' artiste á Giverny; the 16th century ´Etude d'iris by Conrad Gessner and La Parabole des aveugles by Peter Bruegel; the glorious Le Jardin du paradis by the artist known simply as Maitre de Haute-Rhénanie which dates to the early 15th century; and many other works of art.
The book is published by Flammarion, but the address of the publisher is not indicated in the book. If you are interested in obtaining it, the ISBN is 2-08-011799-8 and the ISSN is 1258-2794, which book dealers should find useful. Many, many thanks to Jean Peyrard for bringing my attention to this lovely book, and for a gift which I appreciate more than words can express.
I always look forward to receiving Iris et Bulbeuses, the publication of the Sociètè Française des Iris et Plantes Bulbeuses. The autumn 1997 issue was a special delight. The cover is a color reproduction of an elegant pastel of yellow and violet irises by an extraordinarily talented artist: Marie Magdeleine Boineau-Chevalier. A member of the French iris group, this gifted artist holds the position of Professor of Applied Arts at the Ecole Boulle in Paris.
Another delight in the autumn issue is a beautiful color photograph on the front inside cover. This photograph is of a group of some of the most distinguished members of the Sociètè : newly installed President and Editor, Charles Guy Bouquet; Vice Presidents Suzy Frederic and Jean Segui; General Secretary, Anne Marie Chesnais; Assistant Secretary, Fernande Vervialle; Treasurer, Françoise Pouillat; Delegates Jean Loutz and Gerard Briere; and Honorary President Odette Perrier.
If you would like to receive this interesting iris journal, membership in the Society for those of us who are overseas is 210.00 FF. Address correspondence to the Secretary, Mme Chesnais, 19 rue du Dr. Kurzenne 78350 JOUY EN JOSAS, France.
WHOOPER SWAN (B. L. C. Dodsworth, '95), a TB, was awarded the British Iris Society's Dykes Medal in 1997. It is a lovely white iris with a red beard and it grows up to 40". The Fothergill Trophy, reserved for tall bearded irises, went to BOLLINGER (B. L. C. Dodsworth 95) which has white standards with a purple infusion and white falls with purple stitching. It has a purple beard and a strong, sweet scent. It is reported as having a height of 38".
The 1997 Souvenir de M. Lemon Trophy, reserved for bearded irises other than TBs, went to Cy Bartlett's MARY CONSTANCE, an IB resulting from VIOLET LASS x AMADORA. It is a ruffled blue-violet self with a blue beard. PRUSSIAN BLUE, a tetraploid Siberian iris, won the Hugh Miller Trophy, which is reserved for beardless irises other than PCNs. PRUSSIAN BLUE, bred by Tomas Tamberg of Germany, grows to 34+", and is described as "dark blue" with one branch and four buds. The British Iris Society award reserved for Pacific Coast Native irises, the Marjorie Brummitt Trophy, was bestowed on LINCOLN IMP, which resulted from a bee cross on an unnamed cultivar in the garden of Mrs Jill Dodsworth. Barney Baughen reports that this lilac iris, which evidences a heritage from Iris douglasiana, is the most vigorous PCN in his garden.
The Joint Iris Committee of the Royal Horticultural Society and British Iris Society awards for 1997 included honors for several irises of North American origin. The Award of Garden Merit was granted to FINE LINE (Witt 78), a Cal-Sib. Two SDBs by American breeders received the Award of Merit: Bennett Jones's COTTON BLOSSOM (70) and Dave Niswonger's SPLASH OF RED (87). The Award of Merit was also bestowed on one MTB, for which your "International News" editor, sometimes mistakenly thought to be Uriah Heep, is humbly grateful: ROBIN GOODFELLOW (Mahan 94).
There have been some changes in officers of the British Iris Society. The new President is Cy Bartlett. Clive Russell stepped down from the office of Treasurer, but has taken the position of Enrolment Secretary vice Eileen Wise. Peter Farrell has assumed the duties of Treasurer. For those wishing to renew their BIS membership, Edwin Furnival has remained as Membership Secretary, and it is to him that your dues should be sent. BIS is able to take dollar checks. Annual dues are $15.00 or for a family, $17.00. There is no triennial discount, but you may pay for as many years in advance as you wish. Mr Furnival's address is: 15 Parkwood Drive, Rawtenstall, Lancs. BB4 6RP, England.
Anyone wishing to join BIS for the first time or wishing to obtain additional information about membership should contact Clive Russell. His address is 47 Station Road, New Barnet, Herts. EN5 1PR, England. Or, if you wish to email him, his email address is <britirisoc@aol.com>. I would add that the annual Year Book published by the BIS, and edited by the talented Berney Baughen, is in itself worth much more than the cost of the annual dues. It is always an absolutely first-rate publication.