Wikimedia Commons
Iridaceae
Japanese Iris
Iris ensata
Heroic spirit, valor, summer rain.
- Family
- Iridaceae
- Genus
- Iris
- Native to
- Japan, Korea, China, Russia
- Bloom season
- Early-Summer
- Type
- Perennial
- Height
- 60–120 cm (2–4 ft)
- Sunlight
- Full sun to part shade
- Soil
- Wet, rich, acidic
- Water
- Very high
- Hardiness
- 4–9
- Lifespan
- Long-lived perennial
Did you know
- Japanese irises (hanashobu) have been bred in Japan for over 500 years—the Edo, Higo, and Ise breeding lines are each guarded by their own specialist societies, like koi or bonsai.
- Some Japanese iris flowers reach 10 inches across—the largest of any iris—and look so much like flat butterflies hovering above the water that they're sometimes called 'sword butterflies.'
- The plant requires its roots to be flooded in summer but bone dry in winter—Japanese gardens traditionally raise and lower water levels in iris ponds with the seasons.
- Japanese irises are celebrated in the iris festival at Meiji Shrine in Tokyo every June, where over 1,500 cultivars bloom in the historic garden once tended by Emperor Meiji.
- The leaves have a sword-like shape that gave rise to the Japanese tradition of hanging iris leaves at boys' Children's Day on May 5—the leaves were said to ward off evil spirits and inspire bravery.
Color meanings
0
heroic spirit
1
valor
2
purification