Iberis Cruciferae Perennial Candytuft
Extremely decorative and useful evergreen with durable, fresh-looking foliage and clusters of sparkling white or pale-tinted flowers in spring. The plants spread, but not enough to be troublesome in small gardens.
saxatalis—Miniature even among miniatures, with two-inch clumps of hairy-edged leaves and flat clusters of white flowers in May. Needs gravelly, limy soil.
sempervirens—The better-known named varieties are offspring of this stalwart, nearly shrub-like perennial with blunt-tipped narrow leaves and flowers forming an umbrella-shaped cluster on six-to eight-inch stems. One plant can spread out to several feet across. Among the dwarfs are ‘Autumn Snow,’ seven inches high and often blooming again in September; ‘Little Gem,’ compact mounds four to six inches high; ‘Purity,’ the purest of white; and ‘Snowflake,’ a little later (June) and a little larger (eight inches).
Iris Iridaceae
Basically, iris are of two types—bulbous and rhizomatous—each with miniature species, varieties, and hybrids. Leaves may be broad and flat, or slim and grass-like. Stems may bear one or several flowers, the earliest in March and the latest in June. Natural colors include white, yellow, and all shades of lavender and purple; hybrids widen the range to many other tints.
There are many miniature species, some with several varieties, and also hybrids, of their own. By far the largest group is the ‘Dwarf Bearded Iris,’ so classified by the American Iris Society according to the height of the flower stalk, and further divided into two series: miniature dwarfs (four to ten inches) and standard dwarfs, Lilliputs (ten to fifteen inches). These are rhizomatous, of course, like the tall bearded giants of the garden, and bloom midway between the earlier species and the big ones.
bakeriana—Bulbous, about six inches high, with round leaves and early, fragrant, blue-purple flowers.
cristata—Crested iris with rhizomes and spreading by stolons to make wide mats. About six inches high with one or two white-crested, lilac, fragrant flowers in mid-May. There is an all-white variety. It likes light shade or dappled shade and cool moisture for its roots.
flavissima—Rhizomatous, spreading by stolons to make open clumps under six inches high. It has narrow leaves and several bearded, brown-marked yellow flowers per stem when it blooms in April and May. It needs gritty or sandy soil, only slightly acid.