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Iris ensata
Also called Beaked Iris, Japanese Water Iris, Kaempfer's Iris, Russian Iris, Jade Cicada Flower, Sword Leaf Iris, Beautiful Flower Water Iris
Japanese iris is a rhizomatous perennial grown for its large purple flowers in midsummer, best kept in moist or boggy soil. It is widely cultivated in temperate gardens and has been bred into many cultivars.
Iris ensata, the Japanese iris or Japanese water iris (Japanese: hanashōbu, ハナショウブ), formerly I. kaempferi, is a species of flowering plant in the family Iridaceae, native to Japan, China, Korea and Russia, and widely cultivated as an ornamental plant. "Japanese iris" may also refer to I. sanguinea and I. laevigata, both native to Japan.
Iris ensata is extensively grown as an ornamental plant in gardens and parks throughout the temperate zones of the world.
Iris ensata is highly prized in Japan. It is possible that it was introduced into Japanese culture in ancient times, in association with rice farming. Certainly it has been cultivated and hybridised there for at least five centuries. The hanashōbu (ハナショウブ, 花菖蒲; Iris ensata var. ensata , syn. I. ensata var. hortensis, I. kaempferi) grows in the wet land and is the most extensively cultivated variety in Japanese gardens. According to the place where it was cultivated, I. ensata is classified into three strains – the Edo (Tokyo), Higo (Kumamoto Prefecture) and Ise (Mie Prefecture).
Widely distributed throughout the Japanese archipelago and elsewhere, I. ensata is very hardy down to −20 °C (−4 °F). It prefers a boggy or marshy environment and soil with a low (acidic) pH. In favourable conditions it will eventually form sizable clumps.
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 ensata 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.
