15 Showy Bearded Iris Varieties for Your Garden

The words “showy” and bearded iris go hand in hand in the garden. These flamboyant flowers are not only easy to grow but also leave a lasting impression with their fancy forms and stunning color combinations. These flowers, in general, have an interesting history.

Their history began four thousand years ago in the palaces of the Egyptian pharaohs, who viewed them as a symbol of power and eloquence. They secured their place in Greek mythology, sharing a name with the goddess who transported messages between heaven and earth, using rainbows as her bridge.

‘Immortality’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Immortality’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 2’-3’
	hardiness zones 3-9

‘Immortality’ is a pristine white cultivar with a yellow beard and pale green veining on the falls. The falls are the downward-facing sepals, and you’ll find the beard in the center of these petals, up where they meet the standards, which are the upturned petals. The beard is a fuzzy patch that looks a bit like a caterpillar. 

This bearded iris variety makes it clear that, when it comes to flowers, white can be just as showy as any bright shade of pink or purple. This award winner is a repeat bloomer, flowering once in late spring and again in late summer. It is one of the most consistent repeat bloomers and has a wonderful fragrance. 

‘Innocent Star’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Innocent Star’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 2’-3’
	hardiness zones 3-9

‘Innocent Star’ is classy and a bit demure. Cream-colored falls have merlot edges. The same wine red repeats in the standards which have heavily ruffled edges. 

This cultivar has a bit of splashiness, but it’s refined by the slightly muted colors and the way they blend together. The beards are deeper cream or light yellow, and bits of pure purple are sprinkled just slightly around them. 

‘Gypsy Lord’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Gypsy Lord’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 3-9

‘Gypsy Lord’ is a multi-award-winning bearded iris variety that will catch your eye and capture your heart. This taller iris takes on a starring role wherever you plant it. It’s an excellent bloomer with a long flowering period. 

The powder blue standards ruffle and mingle together over bright blue-violet falls. An orange beard peeks over a splotch of bright white coming from the center, accenting the contrast between the falls and standards. At about 40 inches tall, this is a towering beauty.

‘Gentle Reminder’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Gentle Reminder’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 3-9

‘Gentle Reminder’ is a soft and showy cultivar with pale lemon-colored standards and soothing lavender standards. A touch of lavender looks like a reflection on the undersides of the standards, barely visible unless you’re trying to observe. A darker yellow beard echoes the reflection of the standards on the falls. 

This is a mid-season bloomer and a tall one. With the potential to stand over 40 inches tall, this mass of frills and ruffles draws and relaxes the eye with its soothing tones. It is warm and cool at the same time. 

‘Belle Fille’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Belle Fille’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 2’-3’
	hardiness zones 3-9

Lavish is the word that best describes ‘Belle Fille.’ Few blooms have the kind of intricate beauty you will find in this cultivar. In addition to its beauty, it’s a strongly fragrant variety. 

The standards are an ombre of violet shades with a delicate cream edge with plenty of ruffles. The falls are a more luxurious purple velvet with a splash of white framing a blonde beard. They have an even finer cream edge, just enough to accentuate the ruffles. 

‘Badlands’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Badlands’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 3-9

The perfect bearded iris variety for a goth gardener, ‘Badlands’ is a remarkably deep, dark flower. It’s not as dark as the ‘Black is Black’ cultivar, but it comes close. The falls are deep blue-violet, so dark that they appear black. The beard is almost too bright purple to be real. 

The difference between this and the deeper colored varieties is the standards. This is technically a two-toned bloom, as the standards are a slightly lighter shade of purple. Among its achievements is an Award of Merit from the American Iris Society.

‘You’re a Peach’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘You’re a Peach’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 3’
	hardiness zones 3-9

‘You’re a Peach’ is a cheerful mid-season variety, single-colored, in a perfect shade of pale apricot. The word to describe this trait is ‘self’ as the standards and falls are the same color and shade.

This peach of a plant is mid-sized, growing to just under three feet tall. Its delicate appearance doesn’t match its tough constitution. Bearded irises are sturdy plants that don’t give their gardeners many issues.

‘Montmartre’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Montmartre’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 3-9

Like the can-can girls at the Moulin Rouge, ‘Montmartre’ is a whirlwind of ruffled skirts in bright colors. It fits right in with the bohemian art culture of its namesake district in Paris. 

The falls are deep wine red with golden beards on splashes of white. A thin gold edge makes the exceptionally ruffled edges stand out nicely. The standards cling together, forming a mass of petals in slightly more muted but similar tones. An artist’s dream muse. 

‘Stairway to Heaven’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Stairway to Heaven’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 3-9

Elegance and purity are the words that come to mind in describing ‘Stairway to Heaven.’ It’s a winner of multiple awards, including the American Dykes Medal, one of the highest honors from the American Iris Society. It’s a great producer, blooming over a long period in late spring.

The creamy white standards are well-formed with distinct ruffles. They curl in toward a warm center, with just a hint of golden glow. The falls are large and sky blue with a whisper of violet in the mix. The beard is a darker cream with a yellow tint. 

‘That’s All Folks’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘That’s All Folks’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 3-9

Our second American Dykes Award winner, ‘That’s All Folks’ is a showstopper. You might mistake this bearded iris variety for an elaborate daffodil. It’s the same sunny shade of yellow. Rising to about 40 inches tall, this flower is difficult to miss. 

The falls and standards are both the same shade of gold, with a gold beard that sits on a streak of white in the center of the falls.  It’s big, bold, and heavily frilled around the edges.

‘Pink Attraction’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Pink Attraction’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 2’-3’
	hardiness zones 3-9

‘Pink Attraction’ attracts attention with its sweet pink color and lovely fragrance. This self-colored variety is the prettiest of peachy pinks, with just slightly deeper veining. 

A whisper of green beneath the falls and an orange beard are the only deviations from the color of this cotton candy confection of a flower. This is a repeat bloomer, so you get to enjoy it in late spring and again in early fall. 

‘Bev’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Bev’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 2’-3’
	hardiness zones 3-9

The name might be short and sweet, but ‘Bev’ is as sophisticated and elegant as can be. Red is a less common color for irises, and this flower does it perfectly. 

All of the petals have a Pinot Noir base of cool wine red. Flashes of bronze appear when the sun hits, while purple undertones create and accentuate depth along the deeply frilled edges. It’s a gorgeous cultivar. 

‘High Roller’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘High Roller’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 3-9

‘High Roller’ is a tall, elegant beauty that shows off without being overbearing. At nearly four feet tall, it doesn’t need to make too much of an effort to gain the attention it rightfully deserves. 

I would describe the prevailing color as rosewood. It’s not quite brown, but not quite pink either—a soothing blend of the two. A peek of white from the center warms up with a golden beard and tint at the base of the falls. 

‘Coup de Soleil’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Coup de Soleil’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 2’-3’
	hardiness zones 3-9

Its name ‘Coup de Soleil’ means sunburn, and this flower is hot! It’s not quite red, but a shade of true orange with just a touch of red in the beard and veining. The color is uniform and eye-catching, as one of few cultivars of this color. 

‘Coup de Soleil’ is a medium height plant, at about 30 inches tall it’s neither at the top, or bottom of the range. The vivid, consistent color makes this one highly desirable.

‘Shah Jehan’

	botanical name Iris germanica ‘Shah Jehan’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 3-9

‘Shah Jehan’ is a well-known and loved cultivar for its delicate form and striking color combination. At nearly 100 years old, this hybrid is bi-colored, but there are more than two colors present on these blooms.