Fun with walking iris.

Our friend Ben thinks there’s something especially fun about plants that send out little replicas of themselves, all ready to root and pot up for yourself or give away to friends (or sell, for that matter). The best-known of these is the spider plant with its dangling mane of little spiders. Phalaenopsis orchids can also make little offsets (called pups) on its bloom spikes, which you can pot up or leave on the parent plant. (Sadly, not all phalaenopsis seem inclined to pup, and so far, at least, our friend Ben’s have all been in the latter category.)

Our friend Ben has already posted on the wonderful walking onion (Allium cepa var. proliferum), which produces green scallions for salads, stir-fries and the like. (Use our search bar at top right to find “These bulbs are made for walking” if you’d like to know more about walking onions.) 

Today, I’d like to talk about one of our favorite “walking” plants, the walking iris (Neomarica gracilis). Like other plants of this type, it earns the “walking” part of its name because, after the plant blooms, it forms mini-irises on the bloom stalk. As they get bigger, the weight of the little plants causes the stems to bend down, eventually bringing the plantlets in contact with the soil, where they root. In this way, the plant “walks” as it spreads away from the parent. (Walking iris is also known as apostle plant for the same reason—it’s on the move, spreading the good news of its beauty if not the Good News per se.)

Silence Dogood and I love walking irises. These iris relatives make handsome clumps of flat-bladed, bright green iris foliage, looking more like a wide-bladed Siberian iris than a bearded iris. Then in spring, they send up lovely blue-and-white flowers, again, closer in appearance to a Siberian or crested iris than a bearded iris. And once bloom is over, there are those fun little plantlets!

Walking iris is apparently hardy outdoors in Zones 8 and warmer, but here in scenic PA (Zone 6), we grow ours in pots. If we want to root offsets, we place each one in its own pot once the bloom stalk bends under its weight. We leave them attached to the mother plant, pin them down so they maintain good soil contact, and keep the soil moist until the plantlets root in and start growing. Then we cut the umbilical cord to Mama and the new plants are off and running, or should I say, walking.

It’s easy to find sources by Googling “walking iris.” You can even buy them on Amazon. Try them, you’ll like them! But keep them away from plant-nibbling cats, dogs, parrots, and kids: All parts of the plant are poisonous.