Iris meda
Iris meda is a species in the genus Iris, it is also in the subgenus of Iris and in the Oncocyclus section. It is from the desert mountains and hills of Media and has long grey-green leaves with cream, pale yellow or yellow flowers, which have purple or dark brown patches and yellow beards.
Description
Iris meda has small, about long, thin, stoloniferous-like rhizomes, and long secondary roots underneath the rhizome.It has upright, narrow, blade-shaped foliage, which are grey-green and long, and wide.
The plant in total can reach between tall, with straight stems reaching high.
It blooms between April and May, and has small flowers, that have a range of colour variations, that come in shades from cream or whitish ground color, lemon yellow to creamy straw-yellow ground colours. It is similar in form to Iris sari, which does not grow in Iran and does not have folded falls.
Like other irises, it has 2 pairs of petals, 3 large sepals, known as the 'falls' and 3 inner, smaller petals, known as the 'standards'. The standards are oblanceolate, long and wide.
The falls are long, thin and either undulating, or curled over. They have a large chestnut-maroon-black, or dark brown or purplish signal patch in the centre of the petal. Also they have a dense, narrow 'beard' of long yellow hairs. They also have greenish yellow style arms which are veined near apex.
After it has flowered it produces a seed capsule and seeds that have not been described.
Biochemistry
As most irises are diploid, having two sets of chromosomes. This can be used to identify hybrids and classification of groupings. It has a chromosome count of 2n=20.Taxonomy
The Latin specific epithet meda refers to Media. Similar to Apis mellifera meda.It was first found in Persia, and then described and published by Austrian born botanist Otto Stapf in Denkschr. Acad. Wein vol.50 on page 20, in 1885.
It is listed in the Encyclopedia of Life as Iris meda, and it is a RHS accepted name of iris. It was verified by United States Department of Agriculture and the Agricultural Research Service on 15 November 2002, then updated on 4 April 2003.
Distribution and habitat
It is native to temperate Asia.Range
It is found in Iran.Within the region of Mianeh, East Azerbaijan.