Family: Iridaceae Juss.

Iris pumila

Distribution: Southeastern Europe and southern part of Central Europe – from Austria and Czechia through Ukraine to Azerbaijan.

Ecology: It grows in rocky steppes and on grassy slopes, sandy or rocky hills, from lowlands to foothills. It blooms from April to May.

Iris pumila

Description: Perennial herb with a rhizome, 10–15 cm tall. Stem erect, unbranched, only 1 cm long. Leaves 3–15 cm × 4–17 mm, straight or somewhat falcate. Flowers solitary, variable in colour – yellow, blue or purple, rarely white, spathes 50–100 mm, perianth segments dimorphic, the outer (falls) 35–60 × 12–20 mm, oblong-cuneate, the inner (standards) erect, 40–80 × 15–23 mm, oblong, with a distinct claw. Fruit is a capsule.

Threat and protection: This species is protected by law in Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia and Russia.

Use: Iris pumila is a favorite rock garden plant.

Iris pumilaIris pumila
Iris pumilaIris pumila
Iris pumila

These images were taken in Czechia, Moravia, Čejkovické Špidláky (April 11 and 25, 2003), and Moravia, Pouzdřanská step, Moravský Krumlov, Mikulov (April 2004).