Iris Toucan Tango - Tall Bearded Iris

Iris 'Toucan Tango' (TB), also known as the garden iris 'Broken colours', has surprising, fragrant flowers in May-June. The petals and sepals are mustard yellow with cream throats, completely randomly streaked with purple-violet, each flower is unique. Its growth is vigorous, and it quickly forms beautiful clumps. Ideal for borders, edges, and slopes.

Iris 'Toucan Tango' is a rhizomatous, deciduous perennial plant, with clumps of upright growth. It will reach almost 1m (3ft) in height when in bloom. It will spread without any theoretical limit, with the centre becoming sparse in favour of the edge. The sword-shaped foliage is glaucous green and highly veined. Floral stems appear in April and bloom in May. The astonishing colour is enhanced by the texture of the petals and sepals. It is worth noting that the flowers are fragrant.

Do you have a sunny, warm location, rather dry in summer?
That is the ideal location for irises! In shade, they will grow but not flower. They are hardy and do not require winter protection. Well-drained soil is perfect even dry and chalky. Soil that is too wet promotes rhizome rot. Plant from July to September to allow the rhizomes enough time to grow and develop new roots before winter. They should be planted immediately after purchase for best results. Plan to divide irises every 4 years or so to give them fresh soil.

To accompany irises, choose plants that thrive in the sun and dry soil. Opt for shorter or light-foliaged plants so as not to shade them, and pay attention to their decorative appearance and flowering time. Gauras, for example, meet all three criteria, and their later flowering will keep the bed attractive in summer. Eschscholzias, perennial geraniums, salvias, and Libertias also complement irises very well. The relative shelter of a wall allows for the use of tall irises. They can also be planted in the foreground of lower and earlier varieties. The vegetable garden can have a few clumps or borders of irises for cut flowers.

Path border: the entire range can be used, from early dwarfs under 40 cm (16in), to tall irises over 75 cm (30in) that bloom in May, as well as intermediate-sized irises (in terms of both height and earliness) and border irises, which are medium-sized but bloom with the tall ones. Tall irises are at risk of being blown over if not staked.

Bed border: the domain of border irises but also dwarfs, depending on the circumstances.

Mixed border: the entire range of sizes can be used, depending on the space (foreground, background) and the size of the surrounding plants.

Iris bed, the iris garden: the paradise of the iris enthusiast where the choice and arrangement of varieties reflects each person's taste. The use of the full range of bearded irises provides two and a half months of flowers in spring. The choice of so-called reblooming irises offers a few additional flowers in late summer or autumn.