WILDFLOWERS OF NEW MEXICO

This native blue iris may be the easiest wildflower to identify in NM. Widespread west of the Great Plains, it looks just like a smaller version of the garden hybrids. Wild Iris has many common names and grows from sea level to mountain tops, but needs spring rains or damp soil to bloom. The rhizomes spread in soft soil and can blanket meadows, stream banks, and roadsides.

FLOWERS: May–July. A cluster of 2–3 classic iris flowers blooms on stems 7 3/4–24-inches (20–60 cm) tall. Petal color varies from blue to lavender, occasionally white, with dark purple veins.

LEAVES: Mostly basal; alternate on stem. Blades linear, sword-like, 18–24-inches (45–60 cm) long.

HABITAT: Rich humus, gravelly-loam soils of stream banks, drainage areas, meadows, roadsides; ponderosa-oak, spruce-fir-aspen forests.

ELEVATION: 5,500–12,000 feet.

RANGE: Every state west of the Rocky Mountains.

SIMILAR SPECIES: Except for escaped garden varieties, this is the only iris in NM.

NM COUNTIES: Statewide in NM mountains: Bernalillo, Catron, Cibola, Colfax, Grant, Harding, Lincoln, Los Alamos, McKinley, Mora, Otero, Rio Arriba, San Juan, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Sierra, Socorro, Taos, Torrance, Union, Valencia.