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A North Carolina Garden Blog

Louisiana Iris "Black Gamecock," or How I Turned My Soggy Mess of a Back Yard into a Garden

5/28/2013

34 Comments

 
Picture
Louisiana Iris "Black Gamecock," the hero of our story today. Ron took the pictures.
Once upon a time, there was a nondescript yard with an unfortunate tendency to flood.  It was not a nice place at all.  

So begins the story of my back yard bog garden, which is looking pretty darn good after a very rough start.  There are many heroes in this story, but today's star is Louisiana Iris "Black Gamecock," which is blooming like mad as I write this.
Picture
Flooding in the back yard in 2005.
I should begin by saying that I am not certain that what I have in my back yard technically is a bog garden.  I can never remember the difference between a bog garden and a rain garden; all I know is that mine is a place with lousy clay soil that doesn't drain.  Whichever one it is, it was born of frustration in 2008, after yet another torrential downpour had left the yard a gigantic sopping unusable mess.  

The first thing I did was to order some Louisiana Iris "Black Gamecock."  I had stumbled upon it in the Wayside Gardens catalogue, which touted it as just the ticket for poorly drained sites.  According to the catalogue, it was a.) native, b.) stunning, c.) easy to grow, and d.) extremely vigorous.  I bought six.
Picture
View from above. The blooms are about 6 inches across.
Now it has been my experience that the Wayside Gardens catalogue tends to exaggerate.  Its zone hardiness ratings are wildly optimistic, and nearly every plant it offers is described as "carefree," which seems highly unlikely to me.  I take it all with a big pile of salt. 

But everything it said about "Black Gamecock" was true. 
Picture
My back yard today: Louisiana Iris with Bog Sage on right and Rose of Sharon behind it.
In my sunny and wet Zone 7b yard, Louisiana Iris has been the easiest, most vigorous, and most beautiful plant I have grown.  I know - last fall I said that about Swamp Sunflower.  Think of Louisiana Iris as the spring version of Swamp Sunflower. 

Louisiana Iris (hardy from zones 4 or 5 to 9 or 10, depending on who you believe) comes in a huge range of colors, but "Black Gamecock" is my one and only.  It has enormous, deep purple velvety flowers. Bees love it, as do the few hummingbirds that hang around here in May.  Each blossom lasts only a few days, but on established plants the flowers keep coming for nearly three weeks.  
Picture
From six plants, many. Very, very many. They need dividing again.
As if that weren't enough, Louisiana Iris is incredibly easy to care for.  It has the distinction of being perhaps the only plant that will happily grow in unamended red North Carolina clay.  Of course it prefers better soil, but I promise you that after a long day of dividing and replanting rhizomes, when you are too sore to stand up and grab the bags of compost and pine bark, you can get away with sticking it in the ground wherever you happen to be sitting.  It won't mind.  From there, maintenance is minimal.  I weed when things gets out of hand and throw on some compost and fertilizer when I remember.  I control for slugs if I notice any damage and pull off any ratty brown leaves in the winter.  That's it.  Really.
Picture
Keeping up with Black Gamecock: Lucy and Ethel in the chocolate factory,
If "Black Gamecock" has a flaw, it is that it is almost too vigorous.  In 2008, I planted my six original rhizomes in the bed adjacent to the deck.  Since then, I have divided them so many times that they now occupy three separate beds in the back yard.  Finally I gave up and started giving them away.  It was a bit like that classic I Love Lucy episode, except instead of stuffing chocolate down my shirt I was stuffing rhizomes into large brown shopping bags, then foisting them on unsuspecting friends and relatives whose lives, I had decided, would be incomplete without a little "Black Gamecock." 

I know mine was.
Picture
"Vigorous" does not begin to describe Black Gamecock. In 2008, six measly rhizomes were planted here, next to the deck.
34 Comments
Sue Finkel
5/28/2013 02:36:54 am

I will gladly take some for my garden!

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Galloping Horse Garden link
6/21/2013 10:56:42 am

Hi Sue! I'm sorry I didn't see this earlier or I would have brought you some when I saw you today!

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Jason link
5/28/2013 02:50:53 am

Very beautiful,and very cool! Beautiful plant, I want some. But a garden catalog that exaggerates? I never heard of such a thing!

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/28/2013 11:27:07 am

I'd love to give you some!

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Sue link
5/28/2013 05:26:25 am

Every gardener seems to have their own respective cross to bear when it comes to dealing with less than hospitable garden areas. To some extent all garden catalogs exaggerate. Usually when I'm researching a plant on-line and Wayside Gardens comes up, I don't even bother to follow the link. Glad you found a successful solution!

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/28/2013 11:29:29 am

Wayside Gardens is one of the biggest exaggerators, but in fairness, I've never had a problem with the quality of any of their plants. It's just that they leave off the fine print, which is just as important as any of the other information.

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Laurrie link
5/28/2013 06:33:32 am

I am amazed at how six plants turned into those lush, full, rich beds of irises. It really was a problem solver for you, and the fact that it is such a pretty velvety flower is a bonus. Such a vigorous plant could be trouble, but its enthusiasm worked out for you in filling a difficult space. Beautiful!

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/28/2013 11:30:31 am

Thanks. I'm totally in love with this plant. Although I was just outside and noticed that they are getting more horizontal by the minute.

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sweetbay link
5/28/2013 09:01:37 am

'Black Gamecock' is amazing in your garden! I thought I had BG at one point (mystery plant from Lowe's) but it had small flowers so that couldn't have been it. You've sold me, now I'll have to try it.

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/28/2013 11:31:51 am

No, if the flowers are small, it can't be BG. I am happy to give you some of my stock, if you are ever in Cary. Just let me know.

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annehimmelfarb
5/29/2013 03:54:09 am

As one of the people you "foisted" the irises off on (two prepositions in a row is not ideal, but let it pass), I can only say with much envy and some mystification that while the plants certainly spread between my planting them last spring and now, it seems I will have only two flowers this year. And I'm sure my site is just as awful and boggy as yours! :(

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/29/2013 05:44:21 am

I think you need to give them another year before they start blooming like mad. I promise you, they will. Pretty soon, when your back aches from a full day of dividing irises, you'll rue the day you accepted my little gift.

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FishyFish
5/11/2014 04:36:41 am

Perennials - the first year they sleep, the second year they creep, the third year they leap!

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/11/2014 07:56:45 am

Amen!

Christy link
5/29/2013 05:12:38 am

Your Iris are just beautiful and must love your garden...which looks just great! You are the only other person I've seen with Bog Sage. I got mine from the Biltmore gardens when hubby and I visited a couple of years ago. I just love it! That episode of Lucy was one of my favorites!!

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/29/2013 05:49:46 am

Thanks so much, Christy. I am a big fan of Bog Sage - it spreads like crazy and blooms its head off all summer long, which is great when you have a boggy yard and nothing drains. Plus the bees adore it. Oh - and the box turtle made an appearance in the garden the other day. I hope he was eating bugs and not plants.

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Jennifer link
5/29/2013 09:08:07 am

I think this just goes to show you that choosing the right plant for a site is important, and when you get it especially right, whatever you planted may do more than just prosper. I haven't reached the stage where I am foisting plant divisions on unsuspecting friends and neighbours, but that day is coming soon...

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/29/2013 10:46:39 am

Right plant, right site - a cliche but it is true. I suppose that's why it's a cliche. Foisting plant divisions on unsuspecting friends is a vice that is new to me, but as vices go, it isn't all that bad.

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in2paints link
5/29/2013 03:30:31 pm

They're beautiful, and that shade of purple is so striking! I can think of worse things to have spreading around my yard like wildfire for sure!

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/30/2013 01:02:29 am

Yes, and I have it - pennywort! Sadly, the irises in my biggest bed have flopped over since I wrote the post. It looks as if a deer took a nap in them. Either that or they are just way too big.

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Tatyana@MySecretGarden link
5/30/2013 11:28:07 am

Very interesting! The Iris That Saved The Yard! The only reason why I don't plant irises is - they require dividing pretty often (and I am lazy). Although, I planted Dutch iris recently. I haven't heard about a deer liking it! That would be another reason. Bu,t your irises look so vigorous and wonderful... I am tempted...

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/30/2013 03:27:25 pm

You know, the Dutch iris don't spread the way the Louisiana iris does. As for deer, they don't seem to like to eat the irises, only to sleep in them. I suppose they make a nice cushion.

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Casa Mariposa link
6/1/2013 03:16:43 pm

What an incredible solution! I have a Louisiana iris called Red Velvet Elvis that I bought because it has such a cool name that lives in a pot on my patio. It sails through every winter and has spread so much I've also taken to giving it away in huge chunks, too. Your bog garden is awesome!! Love those big purple flowers. :o) Have you ever shopped with Niche Gardens? They're in NC and are wonderful.

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Galloping Horse Garden link
6/1/2013 03:52:23 pm

I have seen Red Velvet Elvis and also contemplated buying it because of the name, but with Black Gamecock there is definitely no room for more! But it sounds as if Elvis is a spreader, too. Yes, I am a Niche Gardens devotee - many of my plants, both alive and dead (sadly), came from there. They are especially good for hard-to-find natives, as I'm sure you know.

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Claire link
6/1/2013 09:14:55 pm

By sppoky coincidence I was looking at this plant on line this morning and came across your blog. I love the look of it but you have actually saved me from buying it as you say it is vigorous and I have a tiny town garden! Today's happy purchase becomes next year's invasive plant and gardening nightmare. Great for you that they work so well though. Oh for more space!

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Galloping Horse Garden link
6/2/2013 01:58:12 am

Hi Claire. Thanks so much for your comments - glad my experiences with Black Gamecock were useful to you. A shame that you don't have the space for it, though, since I have a several cartloads of rhizomes with your name on it! I'm looking forward to checking out your blog.

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Jean at Jean's Garden link
6/2/2013 03:01:27 pm

It's a beautiful plant, although not one I would ever be able to grow. (My glacial sand is the antithesis of boggy; it goes way beyond "well-drained.") Siberian irises are my iris of choice; although some of the fancier cultivars need lots of moisture, the species plants are more than happy to grow in my sandy soil. I have divided them over and over, and they also tend to self-sow. Unfortunately, I can no longer give them away because my plants have become infested by the iris budfly, and I don't want to risk transferring this pest to anyone else's garden.

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Galloping Horse Garden link
6/2/2013 03:08:34 pm

Hi Jean. I have never head of the iris budfly - only the iris borer, which fortunately I haven't had (yet). I must investigate the budfly. It sounds very ominous.

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annehimmelfarb
6/6/2013 08:47:15 am

Sarah, I spoke too soon--I have four irises blooming and a bunch more buds. They look great!

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Rega link
5/20/2016 10:11:30 am

I'd like to put Black Gamecock at the center, deepest part of our rain garden which is frequently flooded -- in fact, rain water from blocks around us goes through the garden. But the area does dry out from time to time. I've read warnings saying never to let these rhiozomes dry out. Should I worry?

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Galloping Horse Garden link
5/20/2016 08:04:07 pm

Mine were never actually submerged (or at least, not for long) - just soggy most of the time. If your soil dries out occasionally but doesn't get bone dry my guess is that you will be fine. Are you morally opposed to watering during periods of drought? That would help. But honestly, for me these things have been amazingly hardy and vigorous.

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jerry shenk
6/14/2016 02:34:36 pm

I just bought 3 small pots at a local garden store and planted them along a riverbank (about 12 fans total). My goal is low maintenance, crowd out plants I don't want and provide cover for that area where it's too wet for most things. Of course some striking purple flowers will be nice. From your writeup, this looks perfect. The river normally flows pretty slowly so, I hope they get established before any flooding. I think I'll also keep an eye on this store to see if they go on sale later as I could easily put a few in another area too.

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Galloping Horse Garden link
6/14/2016 08:25:16 pm

If you have patience, you don't need to buy any more. I promise you that you'll have more than you know what to do with, if you can wait a year or two.

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jerry shenk
6/14/2016 08:57:20 pm

The other section where I was thinking about putting more is about 20' long and 3-5' wide. A tree landed in the river and caused the water to slow durring floods and I just dropped this pile of silt.

I had actually considered a different color of Louisiana iris but, your pictures look pretty dramatic.

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    The Galloping Horse Gardener is a native New Yorker who packed it in in 2005 to live under the radar in Cary, North Carolina. In 2014, she removed to a new secure location somewhere in Raleigh.

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