The term "Japanese iris" (Iris ensata, including Iris kaempferi) encompasses three varieties of Irises

Iris (plant)

Iris is a genus of 260-300species of flowering plants with showy flowers. It takes its name from the Greek word for a rainbow, referring to the wide variety of flower colors found among the many species...

 cultivated in gardens or growing wild in Japan: hanashōbu, kakitsubata and ayame.

The bluish purple color of the flowers of the Japanese garden iris is an example of the copigmentation

Copigmentation

Copigmentation is a phenomenon where pigmentation due to anthocyanidins is reinforced by the presence of other colorless flavonoids known as cofactors or “copigments”. There is a formation of a non covalently linked complex. An example is the bluish purple flowers of the Japanese garden iris .Part...

 phenomenon.

Hanashōbu

The grows in the wet land and is the most extensively cultivated variety in Japanese gardens. According to the place where it was cultivated, it is classified into the Edo (Tokyo), Higo (Kumamoto Prefecture), Ise (Mie Prefecture), American (U.S.A.) and other series.

Kakitsubata

The grows in the semi-wet land and is less popular, but is also cultivated extensively.

It is a prefectural flower of Aichi Prefecture

Aichi Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region. The region of Aichi is also known as the Tōkai region. The capital is Nagoya. It is the focus of the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area.- History :...

 due to the famous tanka poem which is said to have been written in this area during the Heian period

Heian period

The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...

, as it appears in The Tales of Ise

The Tales of Ise

is a Japanese collection of tanka poems and associated narratives, dating from the Heian period. The current version collects 125 sections, with each combining poems and prose, giving a total of 209 poems in most versions....

by Ariwara no Narihira

Ariwara no Narihira

was a Japanese waka poet and aristocrat. He was one of six waka poets referred in the preface in kana to Kokin Wakashū by Ki no Tsurayuki, and has been named as the hero of The Tales of Ise, whose hero was an anonym in itself but most of whose love affairs could be attributed to Narihira.He was the...

 (note that the beginning syllables are "ka-ki-tsu-ha (ba)-ta"):

Original text	Pronounciation	Meaning
から衣 きつゝなれにし つましあれば はるばるきぬる たびをしぞ思	Karakoromo Kitsutsu narenishi Tsuma shi areba, Harubaru kinuru Tabi o shizo omou	I have come so far away on this trip this time and think of my wife that I left in Kyoto

Kakitsubata at Ōta Shrine, Kyoto

Kyoto

is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...

, is a National Natural Treasure. It was already recorded in a tanka by Fujiwara Toshinari also in the Heian period

Heian period

The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...

:

Original text	Pronounciation	Meaning
神山や大田の沢のかきつばた ふかきたのみは色に見ゆらむ	Kamiyama ya ōta no sawa no kakitsubata Fukaki tanomi wa iro ni miyu ramu	Like the kakitsubata at Ōta Wetland, a God-sent heaven, my trust in you can be seen in the color of their flowers.

Ayame

The is the iris

Iris (plant)

Iris is a genus of 260-300species of flowering plants with showy flowers. It takes its name from the Greek word for a rainbow, referring to the wide variety of flower colors found among the many species...

 typically growing wild on the dry land in Japan.

Characteristics

Classification	Color of flower	Leaf	Feature of flower	Location	Flowering time
Hanashōbu	Red purple, purple, etc.	Distinct artery	Shows no net	Wet land	Early June - late June
Kakitsubata	Blue, purple, white, etc.	Small artery	Shows no net	In water or wet land	mid-May - late May
Ayame	Purple, rarely white	Main artery not clear	Shows net	Dry land	Early May - Mid-June

Note: Sweet flag

Sweet Flag

Acorus calamus, commonly known as Sweet Flag or Calamus and erroneously as "rush" or "sedges", is a plant from the Acoraceae family, in the genus Acorus. It is a tall perennial wetland monocot with scented leaves and more strongly scented rhizomes...

, called Shōbu (ショウブ, 菖蒲) in Japanese, is a plant belonging to the family Acoraceae, genus Acorus

Acorus

Acorus is a genus of monocot flowering plants. This genus was once placed within the family Araceae , but more recent classifications place it in its own family Acoraceae and order Acorales, of which it is the sole genus of the oldest surviving line of monocots. The exact relationship of Acorus to...

, known for its fragrant roots, rather than its flowers.

External links

• Japanese Iris/Hanashobu Wall Paper Files (in Japanese)
• Japanese Iris/Hanashobu Photo Album 1 (in Japanese)
• Japanese Iris/Hanashobu Photo Album 2 (in Japanese)