Kakitsubata (Iris) flowers: Garden of Nezu Museam (Tokyo)

 In May of this year, I visited Nezu Museum (Minato-ku,Tokyo) to appreciate the three greatest pictures of the Rinpa School, namely, Korin Ogata's national treasure picture “Kakitsubata-hana-zu (rabbit-ear-iris flowers picture),” Okyo Maruyama's picture “Fuji-hana-zu (wisteria flowers picture),” and Kiichi Suzuki's picture “Natsu-aki-keiryu-zu (mountain stream in summer and autumn)" in the special exhibition celebrating the 85th anniversary of this honorary private museum.

(Please refer to the links for each of the paintings on the official web site of this museum.)

After viewing the exhibition, I wandered through the verdant Japanese garden attached to the museum. At the end of the intricate walking path, I suddenly found numerous ultramarine-blue flowers of Kakitubata blooming brightly in the dazzling sunlight of May in the central garden pond, which gave me an unexpected pleasure as a bolt from the blue. 

Kakitsubata (Iris) flowers: Garden of Nezu Museam (Tokyo)

 

Kakitsubata (Iris) flowers: Kaizo-ji

 

Ayame (iris) flowers: Ofuna Flower Center (Kamakura)

The iris (Hana-shoubu, ayame) is a classical garden plant in Japan, the variety of which was improved mainly during the Edo period ((1603-1868) and there are currently more than 5,000 varieties.

They sprout from around May and grow to a height of 50 cm to 1 m, producing delicate and ephemeral flowers of white, blue, purple, spotted and yellow.

Flowers can be three-petalled, six-petalled or double-petalled and the sword-shaped  leaves are narrow and raised with distinct veins.

In Japanese horticulture, there are four main types according to where the variety was bred, which are called Edo, Ise, Higo, Nagai Kosei families. Furthermore, the hybrids of these families, the yellow-flowered varieties bred through interspecific crosses, and varieties bred in foreign countries such as the USA are inherited.

The irises that I photographed in the Ofuna Flower Center belong to a classic strain of the Ofuna iris family. They were bred based on the national export policy during the Taisho period (1912-1926). This breeding was linked to the historical background of the internationalization of modern Japan at the time. 

The main person behind this breeding was Bungo Miyazawa, who was the director of the Kanagawa Prefectural Agricultural Experiment Station at the time. Although this station continued only for a short period of time, some 300 varieties were bred by crossing the Edo-type iris varieties available at the time.

The current Ofuna Flower Center is the successor to this Kanagawa Prefectural Agricultural Experiment Station.

Ayame (iris) flowers: Ofuna Flower Center (Kamakura)

 

Ayame (iris) flowers: Ofuna Flower Center (Kamakura)

 

Ayame (iris) flowers: Ofuna Flower Center (Kamakura)

 

Ayame (iris) flowers: Ofuna Flower Center (Kamakura)

 

Ayame (iris) flowers: Ofuna Flower Center (Kamakura)

 

Ayame (iris) flowers: Ofuna Flower Center (Kamakura)

 

Ayame (iris) flowers: Ofuna Flower Center (Kamakura)

 

Ayame (iris) flowers: Ofuna Flower Center (Kamakura)

 

Ayame (iris) flowers: Tokei-ji

Garden: Kaizo-ji

Iris flowers in Meigetsu-in

In Japan, purple is traditionally esteemed as the most elegant and refined color.

The stunning combination of light bluish purple and vivid yellow, along with the petal texture looking like rich silk fabric, is the quintessence of the true beauty of this season.

Iris flowers in Meigetsu-in

Under the precious fair sky, against the jade green background of leaves, different purple colors of graceful iris flowers dazzled my eyes totally.