Part of our mission at HIPS is to provide you with the most accurate identification of the iris cultivars presented in our gallery. Because historic irises are 30+ years old, and many much older, that task becomes more difficult with the passing of time. Those who hybridized the earlier iris are in many cases long gone, and along with the descriptions, an occasional faded photos or artist’s depiction, we only have provenance to guide us.
So that we do not provide inaccurate information, we are particularly critical of any iris photo that gets placed in our gallery. In some cases identification is virtually impossible based upon available information. Use this key to understand the vetting symbols:
V* Vetted prior to 2012 by IRIS ID chairperson Phil Edinger – all older photos will be vetted in this manner.
V Vetted – this photo has been reviewed by the HIPS ID committee and thought to be correct with an accuracy of greater than 90%.
A Archive photo – This photo is a picture of a HIPS archived slide, when the iris appears to be extinct (or not growing in any known garden setting with a name), and evidence is lacking, but the iris does match the AIS descriptions.
C Historic Catalog or AIS depiction of the time the iris was current. Note that these pictures may look very different from what we may see growing today. An old photo may fade non-uniformly, or may be a colorized rendition done by an artist at the time to enhance the bloom’s visual impact (and sell more rhizomes).
P Probably correct in the range of 75-90% accuracy, based upon knowledge we have available today, but it is impossible to make a definitive identification at this time.
X The iris picture represents a common impostor of said iris, and it is put here for educational purposes only. Not every incorrect iris will be published on the website, but only those that represent common impostors.
If there is no Vetting Symbol this means the iris has not yet been reviewed by the HIPS ID chairperson or a determination could not be made at this time. They could be either newer entries into the gallery or iris that are possibly right (they do not contradict existing AIS descriptions).
We invite the public to make comments about any iris’ vetting symbol and we welcome any further information that can be provided to HIPS regarding identification. Send your comments to [email protected].
HIPS will have more extensive notes on why an iris was given the vetting symbol it carries. Contact us at [email protected] for information. We strive to give you the most accurate answer using the best resources that are available.