The iris comes with a lot of history. The flower dates all the back to Greek mythology. The Greek goddess Iris was the messenger of the gods who was believed to be the link between heaven and earth.
Iris is Greek for “rainbow,” which is fitting since the flower comes in many colors. The most popular color is the deep blue. Irises stand for faith, hope, wisdom, courage and admiration.
The irises in this particular bed were given to me by my aunt Pauline Linthicum from Randleman. At the time, my wife and I had purchased a home in Salisbury and were planting our first flowers. My aunt dug the bulbs out of her flower garden for me. Several years later, she died of lung cancer.
Every spring when the irises appear in my garden with their blue blooms, the flowers remind me of her and the day she shared the bulbs with me 36 years ago.