Iris fernaldii

Fernald's iris

Family: Iridaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Fernald's iris is a California native perennial found in southern North Coast Ranges, southern North Coast Inner, northern Central Coast, and San Francisco Bay Area in shady places at elevations of 50 to 2,000 meters. Flowering in April, this plant produces yellow flowers with darker veining, elegantly shaped with sepals 5 to 7 centimeters long and elliptic petals. Growing with an unbranched stem 20 to 40 centimeters tall, it emerges from a rhizome 4 to 7 millimeters in diameter. Its basal leaves are 6 to 8 millimeters wide, with 1 to 3 cauline leaves similar in form, and the plant typically dries to a distinctive gray-green color. The flower emerges from opposite bracts enclosing a narrow, gradually funnel-shaped perianth tube 35 to 60 millimeters long.

Habitat: Common. Shady places

Bloom period: Apr

Elevation: 50-2000 m

Bioregions: s NCoRO, s NCoRI, n CCo, SnFrB.

California counties: Sonoma, Napa, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Marin, Lake, Solano, Glenn, Colusa, Yolo

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.