Iris minutoaurea is a dwarf iris from Korea and northeastern China, with one small golden flower on each very short stem. It doesn't grow wild in the US, and US gardeners report it can be hard to bring into bloom. It's sometimes called small yellow-flower iris.
Appearance
- Growth form
- A small, clump-forming perennial that spreads by thin . In bloom it stands only about 4–12 in (10–30 cm) tall.
- Leaves
- Narrow, grassy leaves appear in early spring and keep growing after flowering, up to about 16 in (40 cm).
- Flowers
- Each stem carries a single bright to pale yellow flower about 1–1.2 in (2.5–3 cm) across, with brown or purple markings on the lower petals. In its home range it blooms in April and May.
- Fruit
- A round seed capsule forms in early summer.
Look-alikes
Yellow flagIris pseudacorus
Yellow flag is a big wetland iris, 3–5 ft (1–1.5 m) tall with flowers 3–4 in (7–10 cm) across. Iris minutoaurea is under a foot tall with flowers about 1 in (2.5–3 cm) across.
Why they get mixed upBoth are yellow irises, and yellow flag is widespread in the US, where it's considered invasive in a number of states.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- forest edges
- grassy hillsides
- Range
- Native to the Korean Peninsula and Liaoning Province in northeastern China. It doesn't grow wild in the US.
Growing it
- Care
- Rare in gardens in Europe, and reported to be hard to get to bloom in the US. It likes humus-rich, well-drained, neutral to acidic soil in sun or part shade, such as a rock garden, and dislikes soggy ground.
- Propagation
- Usually divided when clumps get crowded.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
More species to explore
Record what you meet and build your own collection
Your photos are kept with their date and place, and you can fill regional albums one species at a time.