Lompoc Valley Iris Society

Lompoc Valley Iris Society A liaison for our community and encouraging the growing and showing of Tall Bearded Iris since 1969.

Important announcement: New Iris Society in Lompoc! *and a new page to follow! (Scroll down for the link.) After 55 year...
07/22/2025

Important announcement: New Iris Society in Lompoc! *and a new page to follow! (Scroll down for the link.)

After 55 years, the Lompoc Valley Iris Society (formerly the Robert F. Young Iris Society) has reached the end of its bloom season.

But!! The silver lining is that a new iris society is sprouting to carry on its flowery legacy. The Central Coast Iris Society, est. 2025, will inherit the responsibility of bearded iris expertise on our beautiful California central coast.

With a name that aptly represents the iris lovers in our unique region across multiple cities, experienced long-time members of LVIS to bridge the transition, and BIG projects underway, the CCIS is poised and ready to take up the torch that LVIS held for so long.

As this page will eventually no longer have any activity, we encourage you to follow the new CCIS page at: Central Coast Iris Society

Like and follow that page for gorgeous photos, expert advice, special event announcements, and inquiries on how to become a member to add beauty to your life in a way that only these incredible flowers can.

LVIS would like to thank the iris-loving folks of Lompoc and all others who have supported us for so many decades in "the city of arts and flowers." Keep smiling, keep growing, and keep tending to the things that matter. Much love, and many future spring blooms to you all!

More photos! A few members of Lompoc Valley Iris Society were also able to attend our home region 15 spring Trek this ye...
05/19/2025

More photos!
A few members of Lompoc Valley Iris Society were also able to attend our home region 15 spring Trek this year. We are busy girls! What can we say? We can’t get enough irises. Making the most of bloom season is what we do. Below are photos from Lori Rhodes’ Crafton Hills Iris Farm, where Lori showed us her amazing hillside iris beds and even took us behind the scenes to see some of her hybridizing tools and setup. The Trek was held at the Garden at Wild Oaks, where the Inland Region Iris Society has been dedicated to creating one of the most intricate and beautiful display gardens we’ve ever seen. The use of companion plants and gorgeous roses on site was like being submerged into a dream that we didn’t want to wake from. I.R.I.S. Has such amazing and loving members who always welcome us back with open arms. It’s like visiting family. Thank you so very much to them for hosting another incredible gathering.

Boy do we have a lot of photos to share. Here’s a compilation from this spring bloom season of all the irises that were ...
05/16/2025

Boy do we have a lot of photos to share. Here’s a compilation from this spring bloom season of all the irises that were in bloom at the Comprehensive Care Center in Lompoc where LVIS planted somewhere around 100 rhizomes in the therapy garden, as well as eight long beds in a sun shape that we installed at Hope Chapel in mission hills. (Last photo.) Currently, our club is small but mighty, and we continue to invest in our Lompoc community with all extra rescources we have. LVIS is going through something of a transformation. Our goal is to re-establish a strong foundation in Lompoc with new gardens and the ability to host more community events, but all of that takes lots of effort and support wherever we can get it. Right now, LVIS is looking for stones or bricks that we can use for our club garden at Hope Chapel. If you have any you would be willing to donate, message us on this page. 💚 We are also always looking for new members who want to get their hands in some dirt and make a difference here where they live. Email me any time at [email protected] for more info!

This spring, 3 members of Lompoc Valley Iris Society were able to make the long drive out to Sonoma County for the regio...
05/16/2025

This spring, 3 members of Lompoc Valley Iris Society were able to make the long drive out to Sonoma County for the region 14 Spring Regional. On our way, we visited the Dry Creek Garden and found Jeff Bennet, who gave us a tour of his beautiful and rare historic irises. The next day, we visited Ford Iris Farm. Okay… When I tell you that Ford Iris Farm is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen in my life, I really mean it. Dianna Ford’s seedling beds and guest gardens were a total delight, and so was the entire weekend with so many wonderful folks. Thank you to the Santa Rosa Iris Society for putting this on and thank you Dianna Ford for opening your absolutely amazing iris farm. Unforgettable!

A peek into the germination of bearded iris and Japanese iris seeds.These seeds were purchased from both the dwarf beard...
11/09/2024

A peek into the germination of bearded iris and Japanese iris seeds.

These seeds were purchased from both the dwarf bearded iris society seed exchange and the median iris society seed exchange. I got the Japanese iris seeds from a seller on Etsy.

Follow the instructions in the photo below. I like to save pastry containers to layer with the seeds inside the gauze bags and moist vermiculite. I do poke holes in the containers. Some of seeds have been in the fridge like this for several weeks and still look very good, so I hope this type of container ultimately works well for me.

The labels must be water proof. I like to use a label maker and then tape it to a piece of plastic to use later as a seedling tray label.

Last year I made the mistake of putting them with perlite inside Tupperware. 99 percent of my seeds succumbed to mold, but a few did sprout.

Planting Irises at the Comprehensive Care Center in Lompoc round 2!!Beautiful day for some sunshine, dirt therapy, and d...
09/07/2024

Planting Irises at the Comprehensive Care Center in Lompoc round 2!!
Beautiful day for some sunshine, dirt therapy, and doing what we do best: Spreading the joy of bearded irises. It’s a labor of love with such a high reward that so many will enjoy for years and years to come. Lompoc’s slogan is “The City of Arts and Flowers.” Well, we take that seriously. 💚🌷🤩🌷💚

An infographic made by the Lompoc Valley Iris Society to aid with interpreting detailed color descriptions on a bearded ...
08/25/2024

An infographic made by the Lompoc Valley Iris Society to aid with interpreting detailed color descriptions on a bearded iris flower. Feel free to use and share!
Iris used: “Get Back,” Schreiner 2015.

Today we completed phase 1 of installing a tall bearded iris showcase for the Comprehensive Care Center in Lompoc, a com...
08/04/2024

Today we completed phase 1 of installing a tall bearded iris showcase for the Comprehensive Care Center in Lompoc, a community service project headed by LVIS member Leslie Kelly. One of our goals for LVIS going forward is to spread color and joy throughout the community, and bring the “flowers” back to “Lompoc, the city of arts and flowers” for those who will appreciate it most.

Phase 2 of the CCC project will include a larger group of members and many more iris, as this only about 25 percent of what we plan to install for the CCC. Not bad for a couple of hours’ work on a Sunday!

Once again, thank you to those who came out to support our rhizome sale last weekend. Proceeds from sales like that go toward funding for soil, tools, fertilizer and other supplies that enable us to give back to our community and reinforce our 55 year legacy as the Iris Society of Lompoc.

Our big rhizome sale was a great success! Thanks to the commitment and diligent work of our LVIS members, who spent many...
07/29/2024

Our big rhizome sale was a great success! Thanks to the commitment and diligent work of our LVIS members, who spent many days digging and preparing iris rhizomes to provide a nice selection to the flower lovers in Lompoc. We stayed busy labeling and trimming on site while munching on donuts and coffee, and enjoying each others good company. Not only did we reach our sales goal this weekend to fund our club projects for next year, but we gained several new members!! I’m so happy to see LVIS grow and maintain its legacy of 55 years in Lompoc.

Bonus photos: On Friday before the sale, we had a small ice cream social/label making party!

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Lompoc, CA
93436

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