Flower for the Day First Iris 4-16-26

> > Well we had a drenching rain last night and the gardens have exploded. Oh yes, the tornado that came by last night missed us by a few miles (it went a little north of us). Iris is the Greek goddess of the rainbow.This Iris is in a flowering plant genus <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genus> of 310 accepted species with showy f <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flower>lowers. As well as being the scientific name, iris is also widely used as a common name for all Iris species. >  > They grow from bulbs and have basal sword shaped leaves that grow in clumps. The i <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflorescence>inflourescences are in the shape of a fan and contain one or more symmetrical six-lobed flowers. The three sepals, which are usually spreading or droop downwards, are referred to as "falls". They expand from their narrow base (the "claw" or "haft"), into a broader expanded portion ("limb" or "blade") and can be adorned with veining, lines or dots. In the centre of the blade, some of the rhizomatous irises have a "beard", a row of fuzzy hairs at the base of each falls petal which gives pollinators a landing place and guides them to the nectar. > The three petals <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petal> stand upright, partly behind the sepal bases. They are called "standards". Some smaller iris species have all six lobes pointing straight outwards, but generally limb and standards differ markedly in appearance. They are united at their base into a floral tube that lies above the ovary. The three styles divide towards the apex into petaloid branches. > This iris which blooms first each year was a gift from a friend more than forty years ago. Because of the weight of its flower head it must be staked for its few days of blooming. >  > > Climbing You > I want to understand the steep thing > that climbs ladders in your throat. > I can't make sense of you. > Everywhere I look you're there-- > a vast landmark, a volcano > poking its head through the clouds, > Gulliver sprawled across Lilliput. > > I climb into your eyes, looking. > The pupils are black painted stage flats. > They can be pulled down like window shades. > I switch on a light in your iris. > Your brain ticks like a bomb. > > In your offhand, mocking way > you've invited me into your chest. > Inside: the blur that poses as your heart. > I'm supposed to go in with a torch > or maybe hot water bottles > & defrost it by hand > as one defrosts an old refrigerator. > It will shudder & sigh > (the icebox to the insomniac). > > Oh there's nothing like love between us. > You're the mountain, I am climbing you. > If I fall, you won't be all to blame, > but you'll wait years maybe > for the next doomed expedition. > > Erica Jong