A nice surprise

I love iris. Bearded iris are my favorite, but I like them all. Perhaps this is because it was the only flower my mother grew, and I always enjoyed picking them when I was little.

I have gotten iris from many different places. Some from the house I grew up in, which have now moved 3 times with me. Some from friends and some from plant sales. Often I don't really know what they will look like when I plant them. Yesterday my husband bought a huge bunch of purple Dutch iris at a yard sale.

My great surprise is pictured here. I planted some iris last summer, too late for them to bloom. I didn't know what they would look like. This is the first to bloom, and it is a stunner! I've never seen one with such a mixture of purple and white. It has a lovely scent as well.