The May 2020 issue of Better Homes & Gardens features our own Kris Jurik for her peonies. Many of you will remember that some of the peonies were in bloom along with the irises in the 2017 AIS Convention.
You can see the article on the Better Homes and Garden website.
Thank you to Carolyn Lingenfelter for calling this article to our attention.
Part of Lunn Garden 2010
Region 21 member Wanda Lunn and her garden will be part of the July/August 2017 issue of Iowa Gardener. You can see part of this article “New and old grow in harmony in Cedar Rapids, Iowa” online. The complete article “Harmoniously Blending the New and Old” can be found as a garden profile on pages 58-63.
I should also mention that in April the Heart of Iowa Iris Growers had Wanda speak to us on historic irises and HIPS. She was a great speaker, knowledgeable and very enthusiastic. Thank you Wanda!
An article about Mark and Jenny Cich’s iris garden recently appeared in The Ashland Gazette. This has been a great year to view, and order, irises in their garden. You can see the article here. Learn more about their gardens, Hello Gorgeous Gardens, on its Facebook page.
They were also one of the six tour gardens in the 2014 Spring Region 21 Tour that the Lincoln Iris Society hosted. The above photo is from that tour. That was another good year for seeing their garden.
Region 21’s own Gary White was elected AIS president at the Board of Directors meeting in Omaha. A number of Lincoln Iris Society and Region members were there to help celebrate his election and installation. Congratulations to Gary and thank you for your service.
Some photos from the festivities. Jim Morris and Gary. Gary and Linda Wilkie. Gary and Ron Crampton who made the centerpiece shown in the last photo. It was made from irises reblooming at the time.
Thank you to the Greater Omaha Iris Society and Linda Wilkie for organizing and hosting this outstanding meeting.
The AIS World of Irises blog has an entry by Renee Fraser Personal Favorites: Tall Bearded Iris ‘Peach Royale’. ‘Peach Royale’ is a TB by Region 21’s LeRoy Meininger registered in 1999. Renee has a number of photos showing it by itself and in her garden. You can also learn more about it and see additional photos in the Iris Encyclopedia here. Congratulations to LeRoy!
One of Region 21’s own was featured in a New York Times article: Botany’s New Boys. It describes what is happening with the rejuvenation of the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden and includes Kelly Norris’s background in irises and horticulture. No iris pictures; but, they do have a slideshow of the Botanical Garden and some plants to enjoy. As an aside, Kelly and the Garden are part of the 2017 AIS National Convention so there will be irises to enjoy in the future.
Congratulations to Kelly and everyone at the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden!
The AIS blog World of Irises has an entry by Renee Fraser of Aruba’s Eye-Popping Clump Shots. These are clump shots of irises by Brad Collins from his garden in Iowa. Congratulations to Brad and be sure to see his photos!
James Ennenga, a hydbridizer who was active in Region 21 before retiring to Knoxville, TN, died August 2, 2013 at the age of 90. He had been RVP for Region 21 as well as a member of the Greater Omaha Iris Society. His registrations at the Iris Encyclopedia included Border Bearded, Standard Dwarf Bearded, Tall Bearded, Siberian, and Species Iris.
An obituary can be found here. Our condolences to his family.
Update September 7, 2013: The latest Greater Omaha Iris Society newsletter has a remembrance of him which includes more of his iris activities. It is on page 2 of the 2013 33 Number 6 newsletter.
George Sutton, the founder of Sutton’s Iris Gardens and a prolific hybridizer, died May 29, 2013 at the age of 80. He registered hundreds of irises including some from most of the iris classes. Two of his Arilbred irises won the William Mohr Medal, ‘Ulalena’ in 2010, and ‘Shabaza’ in 2008. He and his late wife Margaret were instrumental in creating the Porterville Iris Festival.
Obituaries can be found here and here. Our condolences to his family.
AIS Region 21 