Rabbit-ear iris (Japanese iris)

Japanese: カキツバタ(燕子花∥杜若) - カキツバタ（英語表記）rabbit‐ear iris

A perennial plant of the Iridaceae family that prefers wetlands (illustration). As the saying goes, "It's either iris or Japanese iris," the flowers look very similar to Japanese iris and bloom at about the same time (May to June). However, the two species are distinguished by their broad leaves, which grow to 1 to 3 cm (Japanese iris leaves are less than 1 cm), and the pedicels of the flowers are longer than the ovary. There is a poem about Japanese iris in the Manyoshu, and it has been known since ancient times. It seems that the flowers were collected and rubbed onto cloth for dyeing. In Japan, Japanese iris, which was bred from Japanese iris, has been an important horticultural plant since the Edo period, and has evolved into varieties that can be proud of worldwide. However, no notable horticultural varieties of Japanese iris or Japanese iris have been cultivated, except for white-flowered and other colored varieties and variegated varieties.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

水湿地を好むアヤメ科の多年草（イラスト）。〈いずれアヤメかカキツバタ〉といわれるようにアヤメにすこぶるよく似た花を，ほぼ同じ時期(5～6月)に咲かせる。しかし葉が幅広く1～3cmになり(アヤメは1cm以下)，花の小花梗が子房よりも長い点で両種は区別される。《万葉集》にもカキツバタを詠んだ歌があり，古くから知られていた。花を集め布にすりつけて染めることもあったらしい。日本では，ノハナショウブから品種改良されたハナショウブが江戸時代から重要な園芸植物として，世界的に誇りうる品種分化が進んだのに対し，カキツバタやアヤメは，白花などの色変り，斑入りなどの品種を除いては，見るべき園芸品種が育成されなかった。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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