Everyone wants to be frugal with their gardening budget during these tough times. Because of this we are holding prices down as much as possible and giving big discounts to those who are willing to let us substitute for sold-out varieties. You can take a 15% "line item" discount on any variety on which you are willing to accept a sustitute in the event we are sold out. You get the discount whether we have to sub or not! You may use the line item discount on as many varieties as you want. Always the substitues are of equal or greater (sometimes much greater) value. If you are willing to accept substitutions on your entire order, you can take a 25% discount on the entire order. If you take the 25% deal, you can't take the 15% discount as well.Postage continues to be a challenge and this year we are asking for $10.00 plus $1.00 per rhizome. We will guarantee bonus rhizomes worth the entire amount of the shipping charge.A big change in this year's catalog is that we have discontinued listing varieties from other hybridizers. I am trying to cut back and work only my own breeding lines. It remains to be seen if my resolve will work!Why list awards? In short, many irisarians use awards as one factor in selecting new irises to try. The goal of the awards system is to call attention to new varieties of horticultural merit. Roughly eighty to ninety new tall beardeds that have been in commerce for two years are awarded the Honorable Mention (HM). Two years after getting the HM, varieties are eligible for the Award of Merit (AM). This award is given to roughly 12 varieties each year. The next level is the John C. Wister medal which goes to just three of the eligible AMs. In the caseof the border bearded iris the award at this level is the KnowltonMedal. The next level is the W. R. Dykes Medal that is given to one iris a year. For those interested in more information on the awards system, the American Iris Society web-site is a good resource.Why list parentages? This is another selection tool. If you liked one or both of the parents, you might like the offspring. If one of the parents was a poor doer for you, and you liked the flower, perhaps when crossed with a better grower, the offspring might give you the flower you liked on a plant that will grow well for you. Of course, some of our customers are hybridizers, who are addicted to parentages as a tool for planning crosses.
