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Snake's Head Iris

Iris tuberosa

Also called Widow Iris, Snakeshead Iris

Snake's Head Iris
Photo: A. Barra, CC BY-SA 4.0
Family
Iridaceae (Iris family)
Grows as
Bulb
Light
Full sun, Part shade
Native range
SE. France to W. & N. Türkiye
Climate
subtropical

About

Iris tuberosa (formerly Hermodactylus tuberosus) is a species of tuberous flowering plant of the genus Iris, with the common names snake's-head, snake's-head iris, widow iris, black iris, or velvet flower-de-luce.

How to grow it

It is grown from tubers planted in the autumn. It grows best in full sun to partial shade, and requires well-drained soil. It can naturalise in grassy areas but grows well in rock gardens or containers. It is a common ornamental garden plant, flowering in early spring. It is rather tender in the UK.

Where it grows

A native of the Mediterranean region, it is found in the northern Mediterranean littoral and western Europe.

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 tuberosa by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.

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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