Triceratops
$60.00
This ruffled tall bearded iris stands 38" tall. L.S. and style arms are powder blue as well as the falls. The falls have a slightly darker center was of blue violet, gold-brown shoulders and light blue beards with yellow in the throat then ending in 1/4" to 1/2" hairless to lightly haired horn.
Merveilleux
$45.00
This tall bearded iris has yellow standards with gold shadings. The arms are yellow and the shoulders have a mauve tan blended veins, lavender center blending on and toward mauve edges. The beards are orange. Slightly lace, this iris has 2 branches plus a spur and terminal with perfect spacing and 8 buds.
Over the Airwaves
$60.00
Elegant plicata that will be a showstopper in your garden. It stands 34" tall with E-M. S. white with lavender stippling and veining. The style arms are dark lavender, the falls white with lavender plicata - 1/4" edging and darker purple veining at the hafts. The beards are yellow in the throat, yellow tipped and white at the ends. The fragrance is musky.
Heavenly Unicorn
$60.00
This slightly fragrant elegant space-age Iris that stands 29" tall. M.S. cream, hint of mint, rose plicata markins inside at the base. The style arems are open and erect and cream colored. The falls are creame with rose veining and plicata markings aat the hafts and around the beards. The beards are dark yellow in the throat, lemon in the middle and white at the ends. They are 1" in length, lightly haired and upturned with cream horns and/or 1.5" cream frilled spoons.
Robert Preston
$9.00
Our tribute to the Music Man. This is our most famous iris - figuratively and literally. This iris with a pronounced musky fragrance stands at 32". E.S. white ground, heavily veined and dotted red-violet on 1/2" border and midrib. The falls are white ground, veined and dotted darker violet on the edge. The beards are medium blue, tipped golden honey and ruffled.
Granite Dells Iris Gardens
Hybridizing Goals
Granite Dells Gardens is a hybridizing garden specializing in our exclusive iris varieties. We have four main goals in our program.
Plicatas: This is our favorite pattern in iris. We are working to develop new and exciting versions in many different colors and patterns.
Lace: Laced iris have always caught our eye. We have also noticed that this is a relatively dominant trait in our breeding program.
Space Age Iris: Our discovery of the iris world was inspired Llyod Austin's Rainbow Hybridizing Gardens. We have always seen iris as having the potential for additional adornments. We are working diligently to develop better hybrid space-age iris.
Re-bloomers: With advancing age, we are now striving to get iris for more than one bloom interval per year, as well as, lengthening the spring blooming season. We like to define these specimens as late-blooming iris.
Granite Dells Iris Gardens
A Beautiful View from Our Own Back Yard
When hybridizing for new iris cultivars we strive for iris that perform well in the garden. Realistically, most iris are viewed there rather than on a show bench. We have greatly enjoyed iris shows and have won many awards from iris shows. However, we see more value in weeks on end of iris blooming in our garden, than just a few day's worth of show bench iris. Our breeding program is centered around garden iris first and show bench iris a distant second. ~ David
We'd like to share this video with you. Just click the link below the picture. I made this video a few years ago when I wanted David to enjoy some iris off-season. There are many hybrid iris which I didn't identify, as well as several unnamed seedlings. You may also enjoy this video by clicking here: https://youtu.be/nSNKT9oY9XU
~ Trish
Meet David Spence
David R Spence
David Spence has been an iris enthusiast nearly all his life. Growing iris started as a hobby when he lived in rural Hennepin County, Minnesota. In the 1970s, many things that weren't available at the local store, were ordered by mail. Catalogs with illustrations and photos were accompanied by an order form that was filled out, clipped from the catalog and sent by mail with a check or money order for payment. Color catalogs for iris were rare.
David was looking for something to entertain himself during summer break. He was looking for a rose catalog. His mom had a collection of gardening catalogs and he decided to look there. Maybe he'd find a hardy rose variety that he could order and grow before the summer ended. He stumbled upon a colorful iris catalog that was published by Lloyd Austin, "Lloyd Austin's Iris Colour Guidebook." The iris garden, located in Placerville, CA, specialized in Space-Age Iris. He was hooked!
Since those early days he has been hybridizing iris, specializing in tall bearded, plicata and space-age iris. Miniature dwarf iris were popular in the Midwest and he also introduced a variety known as Blue Wind. His activity in the local and national iris societies won him the American Iris Society Youth Achievement award at the age of 18.
In the late 1970s David marketed iris through a garden named 4 Square Iris Gardens which he later changed the name to 21st Century Gardens. He marketed iris in Eau Claire, Wisconsin and later, Chino Valley, Arizona.
Since the early days, David's interests have switched to hybridizing and growing hardy varieties in his private garden. Today, he is focusing on providing unique iris to the modern iris world.
Granite Dells Iris Garden is located in the mountains of Arizona where all 4 seasons really do exist. Winters can bring sub freezing conditions and occasional snow. Our garden has even received record snow fall. Winter conditions can linger into April and gradually turn to cool springs. Our peak bloom season is the second week of May when we can still see mild temperatures in the 70s and 80s. Summer can reach high temperatures of 95° but never the extremes in the low deserts of Phoenix or Tucson. Brisk, cool falls are usually welcomed by the third week of September.
Granite Dells Iris Gardens is also dedicated to educating the iris hobbyist in the best methods to grow iris so that your success rate of growing iris will increase like never before.