Epimetheus

Epimetheus is broken color at its best. The falls open wine purple, then splash and speckle over with white and lavender-purple pink — an irregular, scattered patterning that makes every flower slightly different from the next. Against the solid-color varieties it's a plant that rewards a closer look.

Registered by Sterling Innerst in 1991 and introduced through Iris Pond the following year. It earned an Honorable Mention in 1996, an Award of Merit in 2000, and took the Payne Medal — the highest honor for a Japanese iris — in 2004. A cross of 'Dark Sea' × 'Japanese Sandman'.

Standing 40 inches and blooming midseason to late, it carries color into the back half of the season.

Japanese irises want moisture, especially through spring bloom season, and slightly acidic soil — they won't tolerate lime. Full sun gives the best performance. Hardy in zones 4–8.