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Iris missouriensis

Common name:	Rocky Mountain Iris	Family:	Iridaceae
Author:	Nutt.	Botanical references:	60, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	Many plants in this genus are thought to be poisonous if ingested, so caution is advised[65]. An arrow poison was made from the ground-up roots[207]. Plants can cause skin irritations and allergies in some people[238].
Range:	Western N. America - British Columbia to Mexico, east to South Dakota and Alberta.
Habitat:	Meadows and streamsides[60]. Also found in pinewoods[79]. Often found in apparently dry situations, but always where moisture is abundant until flowering time[60].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	I. longipetala[B,C,P] I. missouriensis var. arizonica[B,P] I. missouriensis var. pelogonus[B,P] I. pariensis[B,P] I. tolmieana[B,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Blue Flag, Western [S], Rocky Mountain Iris [B,P], Western Blue Flag [S],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Liliales. Iris family
Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds	From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia , DEFRA Injurious Weeds
	Listed as noxious/invasive for: California, Nevada.

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.75m by 1m . . It is in flower from May to June. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist or wet soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Bog Garden, Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade.

Edible Uses

Coffee.

The roasted seed is a coffee substitute[177, 183].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Analgesic Diuretic Emetic Odontalgic Poultice Salve Stomachic.

Rocky Mountain iris was employed medicinally by several native North American Indian tribes who used it to treat various complaints, but especially as an external application for skin problems[257]. It was for a time an officinal American medicinal plant[4], but is little, if at all, used in modern herbalism.
The root is emetic and odontalgic[61, 257]. An infusion has been used in the treatment of kidney and bladder complaints, stomach aches etc[257]. The pulped root is placed in the tooth cavity or on the gum in order to bring relief from toothache[207]. A decoction of the root has been used as ear drops to treat earaches[257]. A poultice of the mashed roots has been applied to rheumatic joints and also used as a salve on venereal sores[257].
Caution is advised in the use of this plant, see the notes above on toxicity[K].
A paste of the ripe seeds has been used as a dressing on burns[257].

Other Uses

Dye.

Yields a green dye[155] (part of plant used is not specified).

Cultivation details

Requires a moist soil, growing well in a moist border, but intolerant of stagnant water[1]. Easily grown in a sunny position so long as the soil is wet in the spring[187].
A polymorphic species[79].
Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer or rabbits[233].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Stored seed should be sown as early in the year as possible in a cold frame. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse or cold frame for their first year. Plant out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer.
Division, best done after flowering. Another report says that it is best done in spring or early autumn[187]. Very easy, larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the spring.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[S] Image from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[S] Image from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[S] Image from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[S] SW USA Dist. Maps from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[PHARM] Phytochemical Data (common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Iridaceae.

[CHINA] Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[60] Hitchcock. C. L. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press 1955
A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[65] Frohne. D. and Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Wolfe 1984 ISBN 0723408394
Brilliant. Goes into technical details but in a very readable way. The best work on the subject that I've come across so far.

[79] Innes. C. The World of Iridaceae
Deals with many of the plants in the Iris family giving brief details of habitat and notes on cultivation. Well illustrated.

[155] Arnberger. L. P. Flowers of the Southwest Mountains. Southwestern Monuments Ass. 1968
A lovely little pocket guide to wild plants in the southern Rockies of America.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[187] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Perennials Volumes 1 and 2. Pan Books 1991 ISBN 0-330-30936-9
Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[207] Coffey. T. The History and Folklore of North American Wild Flowers. Facts on File. 1993 ISBN 0-8160-2624-6
A nice read, lots of information on plant uses.

[233] Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990 ISBN 0 460 86048 8
A concise guide to a wide range of perennials. Lots of cultivation guides, very little on plant uses.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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