Iris tenax

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Species of tree

title: "Iris tenax" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["iris-(plant)", "flora-of-british-columbia", "flora-of-california", "flora-of-oregon", "flora-of-washington-(state)", "flora-of-the-klamath-mountains", "flora-without-expected-tnc-conservation-status"] description: "Species of tree" topic_path: "geography/united-kingdom" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iris_tenax" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Species of tree ::

|image = Iris_Tenax,_Coastal_Oregon,_April_2015.jpg |genus = Iris |display_parents = 3 |parent = Iris ser. Californicae |species = tenax |authority = Dougl. ex Lindl.

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Single_Tenax_Iridaceae.jpg" caption="''Iris tenax'' growing in the chaparral and riparian of Engels Creek near Thunder Mountain Rd. Glide, Oregon, Douglas County"] ::

Iris tenax is a species of Iris, known by the common names tough-leaved iris, Oregon iris, or more colloquially, flag.

Distribution

It is native to southwestern Washington, western Oregon, and northwestern California. It occurs along roadsides and in grasslands and forest openings at low to middle elevations. The subspecies Iris tenax ssp. klamathensis is endemic to northern California in the Klamath Mountains.

Description

Like many irises, Iris tenax has large and showy flowers. The flowers bloom in mid to late spring and are usually lavender-blue to purple, but blooms in white, yellow, pink, and orchid shades are known to sometimes occur.

The leaves are very slender for an iris, seldom over 5 mm broad; the plant is often mistaken for a type of grass when not in bloom. Its rhizomes spread slowly, causing the plant to grow in a tight clump.

Its species name (tenax) means "tough" or "tenacious" and is in reference to the strong, fibrous leaves of the plant, which were used by indigenous peoples for braiding into snares and other cordage.

References

  • Hitchcock, Charles Leo and Cronquist, Arthur. Flora of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press, .
  • Kozloff, Eugene N. Plants and Animals of the Pacific Northwest. .
  • Pojar, Jim and MacKinnon, Andy. Plants of Coastal British Columbia. Lone Pine Publishing, .

References

  1. [https://plants.usda.gov/home/plantProfile?symbol=IRTE USDA Plants Profile]
  2. [https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?8185,8195,0,8212 Jepson Manual Treatment]
  3. (2015). "Flags". Oregon State University.
  4. Fagan, Damian. (2019). "Wildflowers of Oregon: A Field Guide to Over 400 Wildflowers, Trees, and Shrubs of the Coast, Cascades, and High Desert". [[FalconGuides]].

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

iris-(plant)flora-of-british-columbiaflora-of-californiaflora-of-oregonflora-of-washington-(state)flora-of-the-klamath-mountainsflora-without-expected-tnc-conservation-status