Valley Homes and Style - Bounty & Variety at Iris Gardens

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Bounty & Variety at Iris Gardens

Exline's Iris Garden near the Potomac River just outside Berkeley Springs, WV offers a six-week season of spectacular natural beauty every spring, when more than 1,000 varieties of bearded iris are in bloom. The season begins in mid-May and peaks on Memorial Day.

"The window of opportunity is so limited, I felt lucky to see them in full bloom," said Barb Wolfe, a visitor in 2007 who took the trip to Exline's to see the flowers.

Color is the first quality that catches a visitor's attention. There are more than 30 distinct colors of iris planted along the garden paths of the two-acre plot. Owner Jim Exline tries to keep them color coded, meaning no two flowers of the same color planted together.

"I never knew there were so many colors," said Wolfe. Her friend, Beth Curtin of Berkeley Springs, agreed. "The range of colors astounded me," Curtin said. White, pale pink and orange blooms grow in clumps next to rare browns, reds and even black. "I had no idea there were black iris," Curtin remarked.

"It's a big deal to get true black, true red and true green," Exline said. "Ninety percent of my customers buy 'Stepping Out', which is a deep purple."

The lush and exotic look of the white and purple iris earned the flower its nickname as the "poor man's orchid". Also popular are the 'broken' or variegated colors in different patterns. A tiger-stripe bloom is a specialized hybrid that comes only from Zebra Iris Garden in Utah, where it was developed.

The next characteristic visitors notice is the aroma. Many irises that Exline sells are identified as fragrant. When in bloom, the two acres emit a perfumed cloud that is as overwhelming as the color array. "I loved the smell," said Wolfe.

Once visitors begin to roam the paths, closely examining the flowers, they see the details. Some irises have ruffled petals; others are frilly, which is more than ruffled. The bearded iris has a yellow fuzzy strip on each of the three lower petals (or falls) of the blossom. Standard are the three petals that stand upright.

"I'd never seen so many varieties of any kind of plant grouped together," said Curtin, who is a member of the Foxglove Garden Club in Berkeley Springs. "Picking a favorite was impossible. I can't imagine how people go there and are able to choose."

But they do. Exline fills hundreds of orders each year for rhizomes - the roots from which an iris grows. "They come and pick out the flowers they want while they are in bloom," explains Exline. "We take a deposit and dig them in July. Then we either ship them or people come and pick them up in late July and August."

Bearded iris multiplies by vegetative increase, with new plants growing from the mother rhizome. Every three or four years, you need to dig and replant the clumps.

Jim and Twana Exline have been growing irises for more than 30 years. "I've always loved iris," Exline said. "When I first started, it was personal. I bought many of my rhizomes from Harry and Whrelda Pittman in Warfordsburg [Pa.]. I had already started expanding when they decided to quit the business. They called me and said 'come get them.' Suddenly, I was in the iris business in a big way."

Iris is a hardy and reliable perennial. It needs a half-day of sunshine and requires no irrigating. In fact, irises do not like having their feet wet.

Exline Iris Garden is open daily from noon to 6pm while the flowers are in bloom. Groups are welcome. Exline's can be reached by following the signs from WV9 east of Berkeley Springs or River Rd. at the Hancock Bridge. You can order from the Website - exlineirisgarden.com. For more information, call 304-258-3735.