Viewing post #851091 by TBGDN

crowrita1 said:Similar story to most of the others....My mother, Aunts {and Uncles !}, Grandmothers, and neighbors all had flower gardens.....some large, and some the size of a postage stamp......but they all grew some iris! My mother had several hundred varieties.....whatever she could beg, borrow, or....yes, I'll say it! ......steal ! As far back as I can remember, I'd follow her around the "garden" (which was a "vacant lot" ,next to the house), pulling weeds (and some probably WEREN'T weeds) in order to "help her out". When Rita and I married, we lived in rented homes for the first three years ,or so, until we could afford "our" first home.......and as soon as it was "ours", here came the Uncles, and Aunts, and Grandma, and Mom, loaded down with "starts' of this, and that.......and there were LOTS of iris mixed in with the "this and that" ! I'm lucky to have not only the "iris' that they grew, but the 'story" behind the iris!.........."this one was growing out at the Harrington place, when we moved there....I think it was in '37, or maybe '38". and, " I sent for this one from Henry Field's Catalog just after the war.", or ,my favorite of all, told to me by my "Grandma Ena", This is one my mom grew, when I was little (Ena was born in 1889), and I've kept a start of it ever since, no matter where we moved to !"........and here is it's picture:

Some call it "Honorabile", and some say, "No, it's Sans Souci"....it's been called "Bacon and Eggs", and probably more "garden names " than you can shake a stick at .....Rita and I,.....and now our kids, too, call it "the one from Gandma Ena"

I love this story Arlyn, especially the historical part about "Grandma Ena". My problem now is what to call "her iris"; I think I'll re-name it after her instead of 'Honorabile'. Anyway your story kind of explains how it was no doubt spread around. Thanks for sharing this little piece of Americana! Maybe thats where some of mine came from. Anyone need a 'start'?