''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 Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, western

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

, and northwestern

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. It occurs along roadsides and in grasslands and forest openings at low to middle elevations. The subspecies ''Iris tenax'' ssp. ''klamathensis'' is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to northern

in the

Klamath Mountains The Klamath Mountains are a rugged and lightly populated mountain range in northwestern California and southwestern Oregon in the western United States. As a mountain system within both the greater Pacific Coast Ranges and the California Coast R ...

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 Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and spe ...

when not in bloom. Its

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and Shoot (botany), shoots from its Node (botany), nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from ...

s 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, .

External links

Calflora Database: ''Iris tenax'' (toughleaf iris)
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q13638423

tenax Tenax may refer to: * The trademark name of Poly(2,6-diphenylphenylene oxide), a chemical compound * Phormium tenax, a species of flowering plant * A brand of glue marketed by Toho Tenax is an international company that supplies customers throug ...

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