Little White Iris
Some of our wild irises are white and some are purple. Are they different strains? Cheryl Lisin of the Lost Coast Interpretive Association answers this question in this week’s wildflower guide.
Iris purdyi has no common name, so I call it little white iris. It starts blooming about a week or two earlier than its larger, more colorful relative, Douglas’ iris. Flowers are creamy white or pale yellow, sometimes with a purple tinge, and often with purple or brown veining. The leaves are narrower than Doug’s iris and the plant is smaller overall. Each flower stalk has two flowers, the top one blooming first.
It is in the Iris family. Besides iris, other California natives in the family are blue eyed grass, golden eyed grass and their relatives in the genus Sisyrinchum. Other family members are mostly from Africa and include freesia, gladiolus and watsonia, to name a few.;