Characteristics of species and cultivars of irises from the collection of the All-Russian Horticultural Institute for Breeding, Agrotechnology and Nursery
Aim. The characteristic of the most significant valuable features of irises from the collection of the All-Russian Horticultural Institute for Breeding, Agrotechnology and Nursery for use in gardening and breeding is given. Methods. Indicators of more than 100 species, forms and cultivars of irises by the signs that are important for gardeners-designers, characterizing their appearance, are given. Taking into account genetic diversity and using the method of assessing the patentability of cultivars, the blooming dates from very early to very late are marked with calendar dates corresponding to years with close to mean multiyear meteorological conditions in the Moscow region. Irises of garden groups MBD, SBD, IB, BB, TB, SIB are represented in the collection presented. For I. x hybrida hort. cultivars the form of lower parts of the perianth - falls are allocated, such as oval-lanceolate, wide-oval-lanceolate, rounded-lanceolate and rounded with ratio of width to length of fractions up to 0.55, from 0.55 to 0.7, from 0.7 to 0, 85 and more than 0.85 respectively. Results. Characteristics of cultivars based on the falls form is given; cultivars with corrugated lower lobes are indicated, timing of flowering defined. The cultivars of irises created in the beginning-middle of the last century are recognized as promising for landscaping and breeding due to fertility, a variety of flower color and resistance to lodging. Also forms and cultivars of I. sibirica, I. ensata are promising as well as medium-sized bearded irises due to the versatility of their use. Main conclusions. The expansion of the institute's collection by medium-sized irises (IB) and representatives of the subgenus Limniris is planned. Many representatives of this subgenus, which are more resistant to heterosporia, with later flowering periods compared to bearded irises, with high variability of flower color, are recommended for more active use for landscape construction of settlements in the central part of Russia.