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Sunday, March 21, 2010

Neomarica longifolia - Yellow Walking Iris

When I say 'iris' most people think of bearded irises or flag irises ... these are commonly recognisable types.  But in my part of the world these plants cannot grow.  There is, however, one lovely iris that I have found easy to grow in a tropical garden.

It's the 'Yellow Walking Iris'.  This sun, heat, humidity and drought hardy plant stays green all year and grows in grassy clumps to around a metre in height . You can see clumps of Neomarica to the right of the photo below. 

I have lots of it growing in the protected environment of my greenhouse garden and in the shaded beds under my pergola, but it is also growing in full sun in some of my outdoor garden beds.  It is safe to say that this plant will tolerate the full spectrum of light, from full sun to fairly deep shade, although more sun always equals more flowers. It can even be grown indoors.

However, I find, the best location is a place where there is bright broken light.  When it is growing outdoors in the full sun,  the leaves do get a little burnt and perhaps don't look their best.  In spite of this, it is commonly used by landscapers for outdoor garden spaces ... we have lots of it growing in the beds at my school.

The sword like leaves grow in a fan shape, and are around 1 inch wide.


The plant flowers intermittently all year, peaking in the spring and summer. The delicate iris flowers are bright yellow with mottled brown spots.

Nearly open .... 

Open ...

Each flower lasts only one day, but another flower will quickly take it's place the following day.

As the flowers fade, tiny plantlets with air roots develop on their stems, and as these mature, their weight causes the leaves to bend down and touch the ground (ie ‘walk’).


The young plants then root and start the process all over again. If left to itself, after a few years, even a small clump of Walking Iris will ‘walk’ for quite some distance!

You can easily snip off the plantlets when air-roots appear, and either replant them for new plants, or just get rid of them – either way, clipping them off will promote more flowering.  The new plantlets will take 1 - 2 years to bloom, depending on climate and care.


Although Yellow Walking Iris will tolerate dry conditions quite well, it prefers moderately damp (but well drained) soil. Mulch is not necessary, and if it is used, it should not be heavy or packed closely around the bottom of the plants, as the rhizome roots may rot if soil is too moist. Water more often in warm months, keep fairly dry when cool.

31 comments:

  1. Beautiful iris . The plant is pretty too. It would be ideal for me to grow, but I have not come across it in any nursery here. Have a nice day!

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  2. Talk about eye candy. Stunning! I love your walkway. Such inspiration! Lovely Iris. Reminiscent of a toad lily to me!

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  3. What a shame Lotusleaf ... it would indeed be so suitable for your climate and conditions. Hopefully a nursery will stock it soon!

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  4. Hi Karen ...Yes this plant has such an eye-catching flower and you're right ... it does look a lot like a toad lily.

    The walkway you see in the path down the middle of my greenhouse / coolhouse garden. The area in the middle does have a little table and chair during the 'dry' months of our year, so it's a lovely spot for a cuppa in the cooler weather.

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  5. You have so many flowers I am unfamiliar with! This one is beautiful and has an interesting story, as well. It reminds me of an orchid. It is really fun to see what grows on your side of the world!

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  6. This is one of my favorite plants in my garden. You gave a wonderful picture filled tutorial and I thank you for the info. I didn't know it would take two years before a baby bloomed.

    Love the lushness of your greenhouse garden. You are an inspiration.

    FlowerLady

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  7. Debsgarden ... I have so much of this plant in my garden now that I've lost count of just how many clumps of it there is. I just love those little yellow flowers ... very bright and cheery!

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  8. Thanks for your lovely comment Flowerlady. It's a great plant for our gardens isn't it? One of those no-nonsense, leave-me-alone plants that reward you with those wonderful flowers.

    I had a little chuckle over your comment about the lushness of the greenhouse garden ... I'd just had a huge clean out a couple of weekends ago. It just becomes so overgrown during the 'wet' season.

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  9. Bernie I have never heard of this plant - how amazing it is the way it "walks" and its flowers look so exotic. Your greenhouse looks absolutely amazing.

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  10. I wish it could walk on over to my garden. I just couldn't resist saying that...:) It is very pretty and with blooms on and off all year...what a great iris. My irises are too short lived. You have a great blog! Thanks for picking my post, today.

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  11. Everything looks so lush !
    Pretty Iris...does drive me crazy when I'm gone a few days and miss any short bloomers.:(

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  12. Bernie - I just love coming to visit your garden(even from all these miles away)! Your greenhouse is an inspiration for me - for my new "SW Garden". I'm looking to have lots of height, fullness and variety - the goal, some visual privacy. Lush = great! Warm regards, Shyrlene :o)

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  13. Thanks Leavesandbloom ... it is amazing how far this plant can spread. The greenhouse is still very much a work in progress ... I'm trying to add some other colours in amongst all that green.

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  14. Amy ... thanks for the chuckle. I'm afraid it can't 'walk' across water!!! But I'm sure that your irises give you great pleasure even if it's for a short time.

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  15. Bernie, this is a pretty Iris which I do not know. It is such a pretty, friendly yellow. I have a similar walking Iris the flowers look the same but are blue. Do you grow the blue one? I grow the Louisiana Iris which does quite well in dry or wet. An other one I received from my neighbour which is a soft blue and spreads readily but not like a weed. Unfortunately I do not know its name either. When it flowers I will post it. Have a nice week.

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  16. What a beautiful flower - I dont think I have seen it here, and by the sound of it it should grow here. I love your brickwork in your greenhouse - the whole area looks very calming.

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  17. Hi Titania. I haven't tried the Louisianas yet, but you're the second person so far who grows it in similar weather/climate conditions, so I might have to give them a go.

    No I don't grow the blue one ... that one's not as readily available up here. I think I saw it once in a nursery a few years back ... but haven't seen it since.

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  18. Africanaussie ... this iris should definitely grow well in your garden. There's plenty of plantlets I could send up your way if you want to give them a go!

    The greenhouse is visible from my dining and lounge rooms and sits outside my piano room and kitchen ... I just love the view from all those rooms!

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  19. It's been a while since I popped by. I've been meaning to tell you that I looked at one of your videos ... you have an amazing collection of plants.

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  20. Oh Bernie I know this iris! Friends gave one to me and I killed it!!! ;>( Of course it is an indoor plant here. I think it is the coolest plant! Maybe I will get a second chance! Someday! Wonderful post! Happy Spring but not there I should say Happy Winter to you! ;>) Carol

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  21. Bernie: I love this iris. I grow two iris in my garden. One is white african iris, which has flower spike now. Can't wait to see it blooming! The other one is yellow, but the leave is more narrow than yours, I have not seen it bloom yet. Yours is very pretty!

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  22. One of my favorite plants! Your greenhouse is lovely!

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  23. I think this is the plant Mama grew as a potted plant, maybe hers was the blue-flowered one-- and we called it 'Apostle Plant.'

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  24. It is a lovely iris. I enjoy seeing them in different colors. I love using yellow in the garden...it makes all the other plants look better due to the contrasting colors.

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  25. Bernie, I love irises, so thank you so much for introducing me to a species I had never seen before. They are just beautiful! -Jean

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  26. Hi Bernie,
    I know this as an indoor plant in this part of the world. I feel those envious feelings coming on again!

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  27. This looks like a lovely plant ... but as I rather too many "walking" things in my garden perhaps I had better give it a miss. I noticed our Winter Iris is beginning to flower ... it will pop up in my blog sometime over the next few months.

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  28. In that case South African Dietes, wild Iris, are also 'walking'!

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  29. It's amazing that you have written about walking iris this week Bernie. Just last weekend I was given a couple of walking iris "passalongs" by a fellow gardener. It was very interesting to read more about them.

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  30. Your garden is amazing, and these photos are beautiful! I found a great place to shop flowers online that would look nice in a garden like this. The site is CanadaWideFlowers.com

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