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Tibet Iris

Iris clarkei

Tibet Iris
Photo: Tshering Dorji, CC BY-SA 3.0

Iris clarkei is a rhizomatous perennial iris from the Himalayas and western China, grown in a few collections. It likes moist, non-free-draining soil in full sun or light shade.

Family
Iridaceae (Iris family)
Grows as
Perennial
Light
Full sun, Part shade
Water
Keep the soil moist, especially in the growing season; it does not like dry, free-draining conditions.
Soil
Slightly acidic to neutral (pH 5.5 to 7), moisture-retentive; avoid sandy or free-draining soil.
Temperature
Hardy to USDA zone 6, tolerates down to about -15 °C; mulch or protect in colder winters and avoid very hot conditions.
How easy
Moderate
Native range
C. Himalaya to China (W. Yunnan)
Climate
temperate

About

Iris clarkei is a species in the genus Iris, also the subgenus of Limniris and in the series Sibiricae. It is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial, from Asia, including north east India, Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan, Burma and in China. It has grey-green leaves, long and thin green stem and violet, to dark blue, to blue or reddish purple flowers.

How to grow it

The Sino-siberian irises all generally have similar cultivation requirements.

It is rare in cultivation in the UK, and is sometimes confused with dwarf forms of Iris setosa.

Where it grows

Iris clarkei is native to temperate and tropical regions of Asia.

Other Iris plants

Iris acutiloba subsp. lineolata · Iris acutiloba · Iris adriatica · Iris afghanica · Iris alberti · Iris albomarginata · Iris alexeenkoi · Single Bract Iris · Iris antilibanotica · Stool iris · Iris arenaria · Iris assadiana

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Iris clarkei by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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