North Carolina Botanical Garden

Plant Index

Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Genus:
Family:

Iris pseudacorus

Iris pseudacorus L.

paleyellow iris, water flag, yellow flag

Image ID: 17879
Image by: Sorrie, Bruce A.
Image Collection: NCBG Digital Library

PLANT INDEX

ID_PLANT: IRPS
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Iris pseudacorus
Include in WOTAS: 1
Publish to Web: 1
Last Modified: 2017-12-15

GENUS INDEX

GENUS CODE: IRIS
GENUS SCIENTIFIC: Iris
GENUS AUTHORITY: L.
GENUS COMMON: Iris
GENUS SUMMARY: A genus of about 225 species, herbs, of Eurasia, n. Africa, and North America. Wilson (2004) suggests that Belamcanda is phylogenetically nested within Iris and should be included there; Goldblatt & Mabberley (2005) make the appropriate nomenclatural combination. Alternatively, Iris may be broken up into multiple genera (Mavrodiev et al. 2014; Crespo, Martínez-Azorín, & Mavrodiev 2015).
GENUS IDENTIFICATION: Identification notes: the petals are usually erect, smaller than the petaloid sepals (which are brightly colored, generally reflexed, and marked with a signal). The styles are also petaloid, arched over the sepals, and 2-cleft at the tip (except in I. domestica).
GENUS REFERENCES: Crespo, Martínez-Azorín, & Mavrodiev (2015); Henderson in FNA (2002a); Goldblatt in FNA (2002a); Mavrodiev et al. (2014); Goldblatt & Mabberley (2005)=Z; Wilson (2004); Goldblatt, Manning, & Rudall in Kubitzki (1998a). Key based on Henderson in FNA (2002a).

FAMILY INDEX

FAMILY CODE: IRIDAC
FAMILY SCIENTIFIC: Iridaceae
FAMILY AUTHORITY: A.L. de Jussieu 1789
FAMILY COMMON: Iris Family
FAMILY SUMMARY: A family of about 65-82 genera and 1700-1810 species, herbs, of cosmopolitan distribution (most diverse in s. Africa).
FAMILY REFERENCE: Goldblatt in FNA (2002a); Goldblatt, Manning, & Rudall in Kubitzki (1998a).

NCBG DESCRIPTIVES

INTRO: Erect, rhizomatous perennial that typically forms large colonies in swamps, marshes, streams, pond edges, stream banks and tidal wetlands. Native of Eurasia and Africa.
STEMS: Stems consist of crowded rhizomes at soil surface; a stiff flowering stalk, with leaves clustered at the base, arises from rhizome.
LEAVES: Leaves crowded at base of plant, linear-lance-shaped and stiff, to 3 ft. long and 1 in. wide, dark green, smooth.
INFLORESCENCE:
FLOWERS: Flowers 4-12, produced toward top of stalk from nodes underlain by bracts; bright yellow; 3-4 in. wide, consisting of 3 ornate, drooping, petal-like sepals bearing brown and violet lines and 3 erect, unmarked petals.
FRUITS:
COMMENTS: Cultivated as a water plant and widely naturalized; invasive in places.
HEIGHT: 3-4 ft.

DURATION: Perennial
HABIT: Herb

LEAF ARRANGEMENT: Basal
LEAF COMPLEXITY: Simple
LEAF RETENTION:

FLORAL CHARACTERISTICS
SYMMETRY: Radial (Actinomorphic)
BLOOM TIME: May-Jul

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
			x	x	x	x

BLOOM COLOR: Yellow

White	Red	Pink	Orange	Yellow	Green	Blue	Lavender	Purple	Violet	Brown	Not Applicable
				x

FRUITING PERIOD: Aug-Oct.

DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT TYPE: Bogs/pocosins, Bottomlands, maritime
NATIVE RANGE: Europe to western Asia & n. Africa

HORTICULTURAL
Plant Sale Text:

Bloom Table Text:

NCBG Location:

Cultural Notes:

SOIL MOISTURE: Moist/Wet
LIGHT EXPOSURE: Sun, Part Shade, Shade
MINIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
MAXIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
GERMINATION CODE:
WILDLIFE VALUE:
DEER RESISTANCE:

GRIM ACCESSIONS

acc_id	acc_num	acc_dt	coll_id	Action
1953	1986-1741			View
2295	1986-2126			View
2402	1986-2240			View
2798	1987-0298			View
4680	1992-0836			View

GRIM PLANTINGS

plt_num	acc_id	loc_num	pers_num	inst_dt	Action
3116	1953	61	NCBG staff	1967-12-31	View
3117	1953	8	NCBG staff	1996-08-04	View
3974	2295	81	NCBG staff	1986-12-31	View
4099	2402	141	NCBG staff	1986-12-31	View
4644	2798	8	NCBG staff	1979-04-29	View
4645	2798	8	NCBG staff	1979-04-29	View
7009	4680	200	NCBG staff	1993-03-01	View

USDA PLANTS DATABASE

USDA Symbol: IRPS
USDA Common Name: Paleyellow Iris
Native Status: L48 (I), CAN (I)
Distribution: USA (AL, AR, CA, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV), CAN (BC, MB, NB, NF, NS, ON, PE, QC)
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Forb/herb

NATIONAL WETLAND INDICATOR STATUS

Region:	AGCP	AK	AW	CB	EMP	GP	HI	MW	NCNE	WMVE
Status:	OBL		OBL		OBL	OBL		OBL	OBL	OBL

This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2016 National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.3 (Lichvar, R.W., D.L. Banks, W.N. Kirchner, and N.C. Melvin. 2016. The National Wetland Plant List: 2016 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2016-30: 1-17. Published 28 April 2016. ISSN 2153 733X). Regions: AGCP-Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain, AK-Alaska, AW-Arid West, CB-Caribbean, EMP-Eastern Mountains and Piedmont, GP-Great Plains, HI-Hawaii, MW-Midwest, NCNE-Northcentral and Northeast, WMCV-Western Mountains, Valleys & Coast

WEAKLEY FLORA

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Iris pseudacorus
COMMON NAME: Water Flag, Yellow Flag
SYNONYMY: [= C, F, FNA, G, GW, K, Pa, RAB, S, Tn, Va, W, WH3, WV; = Limniris pseudacorus (Linnaeus) Fuss - Y]
PHENOLOGY: May-Jul; Aug-Oct.
HABITAT: Swamps, marshes, streams, ponds, streambanks, tidal wetlands, cultivated as a water plant; native of Eurasia and Africa.
COMMENTS:
RANGE MAP: Iris pseudacorus.png

Key to Map Symbols

ABOUT FAMILY (Weakley Flora)
Iridaceae A.L. de Jussieu 1789 (Iris Family)
SUMMARY: A family of about 65-82 genera and 1700-1810 species, herbs, of cosmopolitan distribution (most diverse in s. Africa).
REFERENCE: Goldblatt in FNA (2002a); Goldblatt, Manning, & Rudall in Kubitzki (1998a).

ABOUT GENUS (Weakley Flora)
Iris L. (Iris)
SUMMARY: A genus of about 225 species, herbs, of Eurasia, n. Africa, and North America. Wilson (2004) suggests that Belamcanda is phylogenetically nested within Iris and should be included there; Goldblatt & Mabberley (2005) make the appropriate nomenclatural combination. Alternatively, Iris may be broken up into multiple genera (Mavrodiev et al. 2014; Crespo, Martínez-Azorín, & Mavrodiev 2015).
REFERENCE: Crespo, Martínez-Azorín, & Mavrodiev (2015); Henderson in FNA (2002a); Goldblatt in FNA (2002a); Mavrodiev et al. (2014); Goldblatt & Mabberley (2005)=Z; Wilson (2004); Goldblatt, Manning, & Rudall in Kubitzki (1998a). Key based on Henderson in FNA (2002a).

HERBARIUM RESOURCES

SERNEC: Find Iris pseudacorus in Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)
UNC SERNEC: Find Iris pseudacorus in University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Herbarium - Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)

WEB RESOURCES

USDA: Find Iris pseudacorus in USDA Plants
NPIN: Find Iris pseudacorus in NPIN Database
FNA: Find Iris pseudacorus in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Iris pseudacorus

IMAGE USE RECORDS

ID IMAGE: 17879 - Primary Image FloraQuest Plant Detail Page (Landscape Preferred)
ID IMAGE1: 22908 - Primary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE2: 0 - Secondary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE3: 22908 - Primary Image Plant Sale Sign (Landscape Only)
ID IMAGE4: 0 - Primary Image New Plant Sale Label (Portrait Only)