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Iris Douglasiana, As A Flowering Plant

One Flower
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An elegant purplish-blue flower that can also be white or yellow. The Douglas Iris blooms in spring at altitudes under 1000 feet (300 meters).

Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana)   •  Self-Guided Tour Item #7   •  Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve internal link   •  Part of Tilden Park, Oakland, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 1 November 2010)   •  (Photo taken 15:10:45 Saturday 12 June 2010)   •  © 2010 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #151054_6306BCX
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Tough Leaves
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Tough leaves grow in clumps. When on grasslands, the Douglas Iris clogs grass growth and thus makes them unpopular with ranchers. Cattle cannot eat these leaves.

Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana)   •  Self-Guided Tour Item #7   •  Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve internal link   •  Part of Tilden Park, Oakland, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 1 November 2010)   •  (Photo taken 15:11:05 Saturday 12 June 2010)   •  © 2010 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #151105_6308BCX
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One Remained
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This Douglas Iris blooms in spring, yet one flower remained in mid summer.

Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana)   •  Self-Guided Tour Item #7   •  Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve internal link   •  Part of Tilden Park, Oakland, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 1 November 2010)   •  (Photo taken 15:11:09 Saturday 12 June 2010)   •  © 2010 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #151109_6310BCX
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Once Useful Leaves
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Indians used the outermost strands of fiber from this leaf's margins for weaving.

Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana)   •  Self-Guided Tour Item #7   •  Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve internal link   •  Part of Tilden Park, Oakland, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 1 November 2010)   •  (Photo taken 15:11:26 Saturday 12 June 2010)   •  © 2010 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #151126_6312BCX
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Not Very Tall
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Its leaves are about 1 inch (2 centimeters) wide and the plant grows to only about 6-31 inches (15-80 centimeters) tall.

Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana)   •  Self-Guided Tour Item #7   •  Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve internal link   •  Part of Tilden Park, Oakland, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 1 November 2010)   •  (Photo taken 15:13:06 Saturday 12 June 2010)   •  © 2010 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #151306_6313BCX
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Spent Flower
(6 of 7) (4809 views)

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When the flower expires, it simply dries out. This plant was full of such dried out flowers.

Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana)   •  Self-Guided Tour Item #7   •  Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve internal link   •  Part of Tilden Park, Oakland, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 1 November 2010)   •  (Photo taken 15:13:20 Saturday 12 June 2010)   •  © 2010 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #151320_6314BCX
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Black Flower
(7 of 7) (4791 views)

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At the very end, the flower turned completely black as if a burned cinder.

Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana)   •  Self-Guided Tour Item #7   •  Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve internal link   •  Part of Tilden Park, Oakland, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 1 November 2010)   •  (Photo taken 15:13:27 Saturday 12 June 2010)   •  © 2010 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #151327_6315BCX
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