Rhizome woody. Leaves to 50 cm long, 5 mm wide, linear, grey-green. Stem 10-30 cm tall. Spathes green with white margins, acuminate. Flowers 2-4, blue to lilac or white, 5-6 cm wide, protruding from spathe on a beak 3 cm long; early summer. Perianth tube 2-3 mm long; falls oblanceolate, 6 cm long; standards erect, narrower, 4 cm long.
from W Himalaya, to China and Korea.
There are some cultivars of this species with attractive flower colours and waxy blue foliage.
I. tenax Lindl., Pacific Coast Iris from Oregon has a wiry rhizome. Leaves to 50 cm long, pink-spotted at base, absent in winter. Stem 20-30 cm, unbranched. Flowers blue to purple or yellow; spring. Perianth tube 14-20 mm long; falls 6-7 cm long with large white dark-veined patch; standards shorter. Style branches 3 cm long.
Source: (2005). Iridaceae. In: . Horticultural Flora of South-eastern Australia. Volume 5. Flowering plants. Monocotyledons. The identification of garden and cultivated plants. University of New South Wales Press.
