Irises in landscape design are one of the most popular bulbous plants. These noble blue-blue flowers are ideal for decorating ponds and rock gardens. Photos of irises in garden design are still very popular at various exhibitions. These flowers were the object of admiration of artists and many centuries ago – remember at least “Irises at Giverny” by Cold Monet or “Irises” by Vincent van Gogh.
Iris is a flower of extraordinary beauty, unlike any other flower growing in your garden. Both bearded and marsh irises, in their appearance, deserve special treatment. They are simply made to create garden accents! It is also an easy-care flower that guarantees the beauty of any of your ideas.
Flower beds and mono flower beds with irises
A flower garden with irises will decorate any garden area. These are unlike other flowers, they remarkably emphasize their beauty and themselves effectively stand out against their background.
The predominant color scheme is blue-blue, and this allows them to perfectly complement any flower garden.
Irises are also suitable for a mono flower – its borders can be decorated with natural stone or gravel filling, and in addition to flowers, you can plant decorative cereals.
Pond and rock garden with irises
The iris design is often used to decorate a garden pond: a pond or a stream. You can decorate a pond with almost irises alone, and it will be beautiful and natural, since they go well with water. Irises can beautify the water itself: for example, water iris grows in water in shallow water.
If you have arranged a swamp flower bed in the garden, then irises are absolutely indispensable. Here you can plant bearded, and marsh, and water irises, complementing the composition with other marsh plants.
In the garden, irises are often part of the rock garden. All varieties of these flowers go well with conifers. Therefore, if you have planned a coniferous garden, there will be, by the way, their single plantings on its territory.
Pay attention to the photo of irises: in the garden, this Art Nouveau flower goes well with wrought iron elements. You can plant a group of irises against the background of a forged trellis. For the same reason, they go well with graceful decorative bridges.
Iridarium in garden design
The most exclusive design for a garden with irises is the creation of an iridarium (a mono flower dedicated to one culture). Iridarium is usually not large: its optimal size is approximately equal to the size of a large flower bed.
A whole collection of irises is used for the iridarium – take different varieties, different colors. Flowers are planted in clumps with sufficient gaps between them, as this culture grows strongly. Plants in no case are planted in “rows” – the curtains are arranged asymmetrically, like plants on an alpine hill: somewhere there can be only one curtain, somewhere three at once. Between plantings, a dump of white or gray gravel or pebbles is made. Against the backdrop of a light backfill, you can scatter blue glass pebbles.
As you can see in the photo, the iridarium can be located on the lawn without a clearly defined border, or it can be lined with small stones along the edge. It can also be placed in a large garden module or on a retaining wall.
Cereals can be planted in a pair to flowers, but no more than two or three clumps. Too often, flowers should not be planted, the filling between them should be visible.
The iridarium is decorated with ceramics or forged products – vessels, containers, trellises, bridges – and figurines, beautiful snags that can be simply picturesquely laid out.
Sometimes one spectacular driftwood is enough, which can also be a bench. The ceramic product can also be one: for example, a large “amphora” made of chamotte, placed between curtains. Chamotte is more suitable for irises than terracotta.
Ceramic balls are also suitable for the iridarium, including those with mosaics – white-blue or mirrored.
Figures and decorations are of great importance, since irises have a certain period of flowering, and then only foliage will be present in the composition.
