In Greek mythology Iris is the name of the Goddess of the Rainbow, surely one of the best God on Olympus. Because of the great elegance of the Iris bloom, it has been the symbol of monarchs and royal families throughout history.

Louisiana irises are indigenous to the south central Louisiana gulf coast and inland marshes. They are all related, in being members of the same series, Hexagonae, within the Genus Iris. They are: Iris brevicaulis, Iris fulva, Iris hexagona, Iris giganticaerulea and Iris nelsonii. In the years after the 1920s when these irises were discovered, botanists systematically searched for “new” irises that might be additional species. Many differing colors and forms were found and named as species, but most turned out to be natural hybrids, mainly of Iris fulva and Iris giganticaerulea origins.

The currently recognized species Iris hexagona, Iris giganticaerulea and Iris brevicaulis consist of irises in the blue-purple range with occasional white forms found. Iris fulva and Iris nelsonii consist of irises in the red and yellow.

Iris louisiana ‘Black Gamecock’ hybridized by Chowning and registered in 1978 also it is the winner of the AIS Award in 1986. It has wonderful velvety, deep royal-purple 10 cm long flowers with a gold signal at the center. Thisherbaceous plant is probably the most famous of the Louisiana irises. This hybrid iris displays beautiful 50-80cm green strap leaves and spring-blooming dark purple flowers with a gold signal.

Iris louisiana ‘Black Gamecock’ prefers full sun but will flower well even in light shade. It prefers rich, moist soil for best growth but is also quite adaptable to any other rich soil. Very high moisture needs; suitable for bogs and water gardens, prefer pH 5,5-6,5. Can become chlorotic in alkaline conditions. Because of their high moisture needs, it is recommended that they are not allowed to dry out between waterings. It is hardy to -10°C.

Parts of plant are poisonous if ingested. Handling plant may cause skin irritation or allergic reaction. Propagation is done by dividing rhizomes or offsets.

Use In Landscape: The Louisiana Iris planted in groups using 3–9 plants together, will spread to form a colony and are great in combination with other moisture loving Iris (I.pseudocorus, I.xanthospuria) Lobelia (Lobelia cardinalis), Water Canna (Thalia dealbata), Pickerel weed (Pontaderia cordata), Papyrus (Cyperus papyrus) It can also be used as a container plant.

Great for cut flowers as flowers can last 7 to 10 days.