Introducing Siberian Irises The Basics

Bob Hollingworth one of the leading hybridizers of Siberian irises was born and grew up in Yorkshire in the north of England. In 1962, he and his wife, Judy, left the UK on an adventure to California where he earned a in toxicology at the University of California. In 1966 they moved to Purdue University where Bob was a professor until 1987. Then to Michigan State University where he is now a Professor Emeritus and largely retired. Bob got the iris hybridizing bug in the early 1970s through Judys passion for gardening and the irises she grew in Indiana. After a few years working with TBs he decided that he needed to focus on a less crowded area and has worked primarily with Siberians since then. He named his first Siberian, a diploid, for Forrest McCord who encouraged him in his early interest in Siberians, and it was introduced by Borbeleta Gardens in 1984. Since then he has introduced about 90 varieties a mixture of diploid and tetraploid types. Of these, ten have won the MorganWood Med