I recently spent some time photographing at the Presby Memorial Iris Gardens in New Jersey (yes – that means lots of blog posts with iris photos!). Established in 1927 in honor of Frank Presby – a founder of the American Iris Society, Presby Gardens has thousands of varieties of irises on display for a few short weeks in the spring.
To me, the most spectacular irises I photographed were the Broken Color Irises. I wasn’t familiar with these irises before visiting Presby Gardens – but they certainly caught my eye when I spotted them. Each iris is different from the next – each having a unique pattern of splashes of color. It turns out the splashes are the result of a genetic instability in the plants.
Here are some of my favorite photos of the broken color irises I photographed.
Purple Streaker
Purple Streaker Iris © 2013 Patty Hankins
Purple Streaker Iris © 2013 Patty Hankins
Purple Streaker Iris © 2013 Patty Hankins
Purple Streaker Iris © 2013 Patty Hankins
Gnu Blues Iris
Gnu Blues Iris © 2013 Patty Hankins
Gnu Blues Iris © 2013 Patty Hankins
Gnu Again Iris
Gnu Again Iris © 2013 Patty Hankins
I really liked the Broken Color Irises – can’t wait to find more varieties of them to photograph.