Iris 'Black Gamecock'

Most of us have one or two garden spots that very few plants will thrive in because of excessive moisture or standing water. Well, those boggy eyesores are about to become the showplaces of the garden. Iris 'Black Gamecock', one of the few Louisiana irises available as a separate color, absolutely flourishes in wet soils, regaling you with giant near-black blooms in early summer and returning effortlessly year after year. It's far and away the most vigorous Louisiana iris ever grown, and it's ready to take up residence in your sunny to partly shady garden NOW!

Iris 'Black Gamecock' is a breathtaking flower, fully half a foot wide and so velvety you can't resist touching the deep purple petals. The golden throat just highlights the ebony hues of the bloom, which stand out like sentries in the early-summer garden. A splendid blossom for any setting, Iris 'Black Gamecock' is especially effective in a waterside planting, the middle of a border, or naturalized in a meadow or woodland setting.

This plant reaches 3 feet high and wide, and is virtually maintenance free in rich, consistently moist soil. Louisiana iris is a native strain, thriving from Texas to Georgia and South Carolina but concentrated, as you might guess, in Louisiana. (No wonder it sports the colors of the New Orleans Saints) Usually available only as a mix with a variety of colors, this family just took a big step upward with showy, stately Iris 'Black Gamecock'.

Iris 'Black Gamecock' thrives in full sun, but appreciates a bit of shade in the afternoon in hot climates. It spreads by rhizomes, and the grouping you plant this year will be even bigger and better in a season or two. Tolerant of unseasonable cold as well as heat and humidity, this hardy native is pest and disease free, happy to form a large, thriving clump of smoky color wherever the soil stays moist and is reasonably fertile. Space Iris 'Black Gamecock' about 2 feet apart. Zones 4-9.