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Tall Bearded, Florentine
Silk [Keppel 2005].
Named Favourite Guest Iris at both 2006, Oregon and 2007 Oklahoma National
Conventions.
It also won the Cook Cup and Walther Cup in 2007.
BCIS
is Hosting the 2011 American Iris Society [AIS] National Convention in
Victoria!
Many of you
will have heard that BCIS will be hosting the 2011 AIS National Convention.
This venture was approved by our members at our AGM last March. The AIS
Board accepted the BCIS invitation in April at the National Convention
held in Austin, Texas. Our proposal was met with considerable enthusiasm.
To date we have formed
an Organizing Committee, sent out a 'Request for Beardless Iris', received
and planted over 200 plants in four public gardens. The gardens are Government
House, Glendale Gardens at the Horticulture Centre of the Pacific, Finnerty
Gardens at the University of Victoria, and Hatley Park at Royal Roads
University. We really appreciate all the cooperation and effort the staff
at these gardens have given us. Also, a special thanks to Patrick
and Margaret Spence of the King County Iris Society [they are also
BCIS members] who were the collection point for the US plants. They also
delivered them to Port Angeles where Karen Phillips, Guest Iris
Chair picked them up. Karen did a great job of sorting and documenting
the iris and completing all the necessary paperwork. Thank you, too, to
all the BCIS members who came out to plant. This undertaking would not
have been possible without your assistance.
Tentative convention
dates are May 30th to June 4th and Harbour Towers, in the heart of Victoria,
will be the convention hotel. There will be Section meetings and programs
which are specific to the type of iris the Section represents, garden
tours, dinners and of course a visit to Butchart Gardens While we have
no idea how many people will come we are planning for about 550. Plan
now to attend, to learn and to enjoy this special BCIS event There will
be more information in future BCIS material.
While most of the
Committee work has to be done by people who live near Victoria there are
some things that others can do, especially at Convention time. We will
need bus captains, people to service the registration desk, assistance
in compiling the awards ballots plus many other different types of helpers.
We also have to plant about 2000 bearded iris next summer. It would be
a great assistance if we could compile a list of member' names that are
interested in helping. If you would like to offer your services and have
not done so, please contact Ted Baker, Convention Chair, and let
him know the kinds of things you like to do. with information about the
kinds of things you would like to do.
STILL THREE YEARS
TO GO BUT THE EXCITEMENT IS BUILDING
The 2011 AIS National
Convention is still three years away. As mentioned previously, already
over 200 beardless irises have been planted at the four Convention Gardens
in Victoria. While this number is well over the 150 we were told to expect,
the most exciting part is that some of the most successful hybridizers
have sent plants to be grown out for the Convention.
Out of the total 206
plants there are 63 species crosses, three Pacific Coasts (PCs), three
Louisianas, six Setosas and the remainder are Siberians. Hybridizers sending
Guest Iris included two Canadians, seven from the United States and one
from England.
Many of the Siberians
are recent introductions like ‘Sugar Rush’ and ‘Yankee Ingenuity’ hybridized
by Marty Schafer and Jan Sacks in Massachusetts and ‘See
Ya Later’ and ‘Swans In Flight’ by Robert Hollingworth from Michigan.
Other wonderful Siberians are ‘Haleakala’ and ‘Kilauea’ hybridized by
Marky Smith and ‘Majestic Overtures’ by Terry Aitken, both from
Washington. Terry also sent the only Pacific Coast seedling. Jim Copeland
of Michigan sent two of his Siberian introductions, ‘Hooked Again’ and
‘Yellow Tail’ while Jan Hewitt of England sent two of hers ‘Peter Hewitt’
and ‘Stephen Wilcox’. Twenty-three Siberian varieties are numbered seedlings
including four hybridized by John Coble and Bob Bauer of
Michigan. It will be wonderful to see these seedlings perform over the
next three years.
We are fortunate to
have a large selection of named and seedling species and species crosses
hybridized by Tony Huber of Quebec. Chuck Chapman from Ontario
sent two of his seedling Setosas along with a Pseudacorus and a Siberian.
Jill Copeland from Michigan sent a nice collection of her species
crosses plus the only Louisiana. We owe so much to the staff of the four
Host gardens who have worked so hard to make this possible.
Planting the irises
was fun. The beds are mulched with compost and the waiting begins! The
bearded iris are the next major planting. The beds are ready for the expected
2000 plus plants with the ‘Request for Bearded Guest Iris’ set for publication
in the April, 2009 AIS Bulletin.
2011 AIS National Convention
Slogan Challenge
by Penny
Santosham and Kate Brewitt
2011 Convention Publicity Committee
“Look Ma, no cavities.”
(1958)
“Let your fingers do the walking.” (1964)
“Don’t leave home without it.” (1975)
Recognize any of these
slogans? Do you remember the product they represented? These are slogans
taken from the ‘Advertising Slogan Hall of Fame’ website…yes, there’s
a Hall of Fame for slogans.
Even though these
slogans are over 30 years old, we remember them. Why do you think that
is? They’re catchy? They create a visual? They touch on something that
has meaning for us? (What kid liked having cavities?) Whatever the reason,
this is what BCIS is looking for in a slogan for the 2011 Convention -
something catchy, something to create a visual, and something
memorable.
To get your creative
juices flowing, here are some slogans from previous Conventions;
Reigning Iris 2006
(Portland)
‘OKC Is the Place to Be ‘99’
‘Down by the Sea in ’83’ (Boston)
‘Memphis Iris Heaven ‘77’
Your slogan doesn’t
have to be ‘Hall of Fame’ material however it should include the place
and the year. Over the next two years the phrase will be used repeatedly
at AIS Conventions and in the AIS Bulletin to help keep the Convention
fresh in the minds of the members. Here are some examples, but we’re sure
you can do better:
‘Island of Iris –
Victoria 2011’
'Super-natural Iris – Victoria 2011’
‘We Will Be Amused in Victoria 2011’…although this sounds like a comedy
festival!
RULES:
1. This contest is open to ALL BCIS members.
2. There is no limit to the number of submissions per person.
3. Deadline for submissions is December 15, 2008. All submissions
become the property of BCIS.
4. Submit your suggestions to Penny Santosham through email at penny_santosham@telus.net
or in writing to: Penny Santosham, Site 60, Comp 39, RR2, Penticton,
BC. V2A 6J7. Please include your contact information such as an email
address, mailing address and/or phone number.
Judging will be done
by the 2011 Convention Organizing Committee. Committee members who submit
a slogan will be excused from judging. The winning entry will be announced
in January’s newsletter and the individual whose slogan is selected will
receive their choice of three BCIS iris. If there’s a tie, both individuals
will receive iris. Have fun and good luck to all participants!
In case you couldn’t
remember the products attached to the slogans, here they are…
“Look Ma, no cavities.”
(Crest 1958)
“Let your fingers do the walking.” (Yellow Pages 1964)
“Don’t leave home without it.” (American Express 1975)
Barry Rafuse Painting ‘Garden’s
Marvel’
We’re coming down
to the wire!! Closing day for bids on Barry Rafuse’s beautiful painting,
‘Garden Marvel’, is Friday, October 31, 2008. It’s time to place your
winning bid on this one-of-a-kind painting of our favourite flower. The
current bid is $275. This is a steal for a painting that would probably
sell for between $700 and $800 in a local gallery. Don’t miss this opportunity
to own great art!
Kate is waiting to
take your bids. She can be contacted at justonemoreiris@yahoo.ca or in
writing at 120 Glass Drive, Aurora, ON L4G 2E8. If you prefer to call,
you can reach her at 1-905-841-9676 but the call must be followed up with
a confirmation letter within 7 business days. Full details of the artist
and the painting can be found on the BCIS website, www.bc-iris.org, or
in the Fall 2007 BCIS Newsletter.
2008 Membership Dues
Did you see a RED
DOT near your address on the front of this Bulletin? If you did it was
put there to remind you that your dues for the current year are outstanding.
Dues are $15.00 for an individual and $16.00 for a family or organization.
This covers the period form May 2008 to May 2009. If you forget, like
I do, you might consider paying for three years at one time! Just a reminder,
it is your dues that pay for printing and mailing Newsletters and Bulletins,
website server fees, and insurance for BCIS functions. Please make your
cheque payable to BCIS and mail it to Joyce Prothero, 281 Cudmore Heights,
Salt Spring Island, BC, V8K 2J7. If you have any questions about your
membership please contact Joyce at 250 537 9215 or jprothero@saltspring.com
BCIS Iris Sales
We It is through our
plant sales that we are able to keep our membership dues where they are.
Diane Whitehead has proposed that we sell plants at Glendale Gardens.
They encourage plant societies to have sales there. The fee is 10% of
our proceeds. Diane suggested that we have an early one for the Dwarfs
and Medians and a later one for the Siberians and species and species
crosses. At the final sale we can bring Tall Bearded stalks in bloom so
people can order them. The rhizomes will be delivered to Glendale when
they are dug. So, pot up your extra Siberians and smaller bearded iris
this fall so they will be well established and hopefully blooming at sale
time. Plants other than iris are also welcome.
We raised $808.00
from the sale of iris we had donated from Mid-America Gardens and the
Yakima Valley Iris Society. The remaining plants are doing well and we
plan on selling them to BCIS members and the public next year.
Iris Workshops, Talks and
Garden Tours
Now is the
time to plan a BCIS event for your area. We have the expertise within
BCIS to lead workshops and give talks on various aspects of iris culture.
To host an event all you have to do is contact someone from the Executive
who will discuss it with the rest of the Executive. We will assist you
in any way we can. Remember, there are BCIS funds available to cover some
expenses for BCIS sponsored events.
British Columbia Pacific Coast
Iris Group
The BCPCIG was formed
at the AGM held on March 1, 2008 as a way for interested BCIS members
to learn more about various aspects of the Iris species native to the
Pacific Coast. Proposed activities include: learning more about species,
subspecies; and hybrids (both natural and deliberate); sharing information
on sources of seeds and plant divisions; establishing garden trials to
evaluate unnamed hybrids; and distributing native species and named hybrids
through BCIS-sponsored activities. A memo, issued last May, describes
these objectives and associated activities in more detail. To obtain more
information about the PCI interest group contact Joyce Prothero at jprothero@saltspring.com
or (250)537-9215.
2009 BCIS Garden Tours
Plans are being made
to have three BCIS garden tours this year.
The first tour
will be May 30th and will be on Salt Spring Island. We will again
see Ray and Pat Spiers garden with all those wonderful ponds.
And this time we will see the dozens of new Pacific Coast seedling that
Ray has planted out. We will also see more PCs at Joyce Prothero's
garden. Joyce has been working hard promoting PCs through the BCIS subgroup.
If you are interested in becoming involved get in touch with Joyce. We
will also see Ted Baker's garden where we will see many new varieties
collected since the last time we were there.
The second tour
will be on Thursday, June 4th in the Langley area and our tour leader
will be Marian Vaughn. The first garden is the wonderful Darts
Hill, the life creation of the renowned plantswoman Francisca
Darts and her husband Ed. Donated by the Darts to the city of Surrey,
the garden contains a myriad of unusual plants raised by Francisca from
seed long before these plants were available in North America.
We will also visit
Free Spirit Garden and Nursery.
In the tradition of Piet Oudolf ( a family friend) Lambert and
Marjanne Vrijmoed have created a fascinating personal garden and
a nursery that is the magnet of all in the lower mainland who love unusual
plants. We hope to arrange a tour of the private garden and to allow for
some time to buy plants ( the true aim of all gardeners!) OK – some significant
time. I believe that a plant list can be obtained from Free Spirit in
advance. If people are interested, please let me know and I will arrange
it.
If time permits we
also plan to visit two local nurseries which are personal favourites.
Rainforest nursery is slightly east of Free Spirit and features
many uncommon perennials – notably a fine collection of arisarum – and
also many plants from the southern hemisphere often considered too tender
by those who garden away from the ocean.
Slightly west of Dartshill
is West Coast Gardens, a grower of seasonal colour branching out
last year to feature one of the better collections of unusual shrubs available
anywhere in the Lower Mainland. I [ Marian Vaughn] have become a passionate
devotee of this nursery.
From all three of
the nurseries mentioned I have found many plants that have been life long
covets. Darts Hill, which I first visited as a member of the rhododendron
society in the 1980s was and remains a guiding inspiration. I am eagerly
anticipating our tour!!
Penny Santosham
is tour leader for the third BCIS garden tour and the first to
the North Okanagan. Due to ferries, travel times and distances
we are focusing only on Vernon and Kelowna. The date arranged with Ted
is Saturday, June 6th, 2009.
For visitors travelling
via Manning Park I would recommend stopping for an hour at Anme Sing’s
home, 15 minutes east of Keremeos. Anme is a member of BCIS with a collection
of about 450 TB irises. Our home is en route to Penticton and Tom
and I would be delighted to have visitors stop by for a cup of tea and
stroll. Tom has 35 heritage irises and I have several hundred modern
varieties. Penticton itself has a lovely rose garden and travelling north,
just off the highway is Summerland
Ornamental Garden with about 60 irises in their zeriscape garden
as well as lots of perennial plantings.
I expect most people
will stay in Kelowna Friday night so on Saturday around 9am we
could meet and then carpool 40 minutes north to Vernon and visit Bright
Angel Farm, The Dusty Shovel Nursery and one private garden.
Around noon we will head back to Kelowna to the Guisachan Public Gardens
for a café lunch and “walkabout”. Then at 2:30 we have four private gardens
available: one with 200 peonies, a lakeside perennial garden, Helen Zadorsky’s
300 iris garden and Donny’s.
Another option is
to visit Elysium Gardens,
a beautiful four acres of perennials, including herb, European and Japanese
areas, with a nursery, in Kelowna. The entry cost is $7.50 per person
and they are open every day from 9am until 5pm. Out of towners might like
to visit them on Sunday morning or even Friday if they plan to spent more
than the weekend in the Okanagan. Don’t forget to include some wine touring
on your private agendas.
If you are interested
in joining us for the tour please let me or Ted know so I can see about
booking a group rate at a Kelowna motel/hotel. Hope to hear from you!
Penny Santosham 1 250 490 4928 Penticton
Learn More About How to Pick
a First-Rate Iris
Have you ever thought
you might like to know more about picking a first-rate iris when adding
to your iris collection? Did you ever feel you wanted to know more about
irises when someone asked you a question or asked you for a recommendation?
You can gain an amazing amount of knowledge by participating in the American
Iris Society [AIS] Judges' Training [JT] program. The primary purpose
of the program is to provide iris lovers, judges, and people just interested
in iris an opportunity to learn more about them. The training if free
to individuals and is usually sponsored by and iris society or club.
During the 2011 Convention
in Victoria there will be two, I.5 hour training sessions in which we
can all take part. But we don't have to wait until then to get started.
We have qualified AIS judges in Washington and Oregon who have offered
to help plus they are willing to come to us to give us training. If you
think you are interested in the JT program, contact Ted for more information.
Just think, we could
also have our own AIS sanctioned shows, and what a wonderful way to promote
iris and have fun doing it!
Send Articles and/or Pictures
BCIS Newsletter will
be published in January. This is your chance to share with other BCIS
members information about iris, about your garden and about experiences
you have had. You do not have to be a technical writer or professional
photographer to make a worthwhile contribution. Send you ideas to Ted
Baker who is compiling the material for the newsletter.
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