The American Iris Society classifies irises into three main groups. The three groups are the Bearded Irises, the Aril Irises and the Beardless Irises. The lower three petals of the bearded iris are named falls and each fall has a bushy beard. The three upright petals are standards. The colors of falls, standards and beards may differ or be similar. In the Virginia Garden, tall bearded irises with over 27-inch stalks grows with ease.

The deer neglect irises. Ingestion of a large amount of rhizomes or roots is toxic. A foul-smelling bacterial soft rot responds to scooping out of all the softened tissue leaving the cut open to air and sun. The iris responds to removal of the affected part. It is important to plant the rhizomes at the surface and not buried.

Images 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 of bearded irises in the Virginia Garden.