View source for Iris ludwigii

{{italic title}}{{taxobox
|name = Iris ludwigii
|image =  
|regnum = [[Plantae]]
|unranked_divisio = [[Angiosperms]]
|unranked_classis = [[Monocots]]
|ordo = [[Asparagales]]
|familia = [[Iridaceae]]
|subfamilia = [[Iridoideae]]
|tribus = [[Irideae]]
|genus = ''[[Iris (plant)|Iris]]''
|subgenus = ''[[Iris subg. Limniris]]''
|series = ''[[Iris series Spuriae]]''
|species = '''''Iris ludwigii'''''
|binomial = ''Iris ludwigii''
|binomial_authority = [[Karl Johann Maximowicz|Maxim.]] 
|synonyms = {{Species list
| Chamaeiris ludwigii |(Maxim.) M.B.Crespo	
| Xyridion ludwigii |(Maxim.) Rodion.<ref>{{cite web |title=Iris ludwigii Maxim. is an accepted name |date= 23 March 2013 |url=http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/kew-322070 |publisher=theplantlist.org ([[The Plant List]])|accessdate=14 January 2015}}</ref>}}
}}
'''''Iris ludwigii''''', with the common name '''Ludwig Iris''',  is a species in the genus ''[[Iris (plant)|Iris]]''. It is also in the subgenus of [[Iris subg. Limniris]] and in [[Iris series Spuriae|series Spuriae]]. It is a [[bulbous]] [[perennial plant]] with violet-blue flowers. It is native to the [[Altai Mountains]] in [[Central Asia]], where Russia, China, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan meet.  It is cultivated as an ornamental plant in [[temperateness|temperate]] regions.

==Description==
''Iris ludwigii'' is similar in form to ''[[Iris pontica]]'', but differs in shape and size of the rhizome.<ref name=signa>{{cite web |first=D |last=Kramb |title=Iris ludwigii  |date=28 March 2005 |url=http://www.signa.org/index.pl?Iris-ludwigii |publisher=signa.org (Species Iris Group of North America) |accessdate=23 January 2015}}</ref>

It has a stout, creeping rhizome.<ref name=USSR>{{cite web|first=V.L. |last=Komarov |year=1935 |title=Akademiya Nauk SSSR (FLORA of the U.S.S.R.) Vol. IV |publisher=archive.org | url=https://archive.org/stream/floraofussr04bota/floraofussr04bota_djvu.txt | accessdate=9 October 2014}}</ref> That forms compact and often crowded plants.<ref name=signa/>

It has between 2 and 4, linear, grass-like, lanceolate, {{convert|20|-|40|cm|0|abbr=on}} long,<ref name=cassidy>{{cite book |last1=Cassidy |first1=George E. |last2=Linnegar |first2=Sidney |date=1987 |edition=Revised  |title=Growing Irises  |location=Bromley |publisher=Christopher Helm  | isbn=0-88192-089-4}}</ref><ref name=america>{{cite web |first=Alain |last=Franco |title=(SPEC) Iris Ludwigii Maxim |date=29 November 2013 |url=http://wiki.irises.org/bin/view/Spec/SpecLudwigii |publisher=wiki.irises.org (American Iris Society) |accessdate=14 January 2015}}</ref><ref name=lesnoj>{{cite web|first=M.M. |last=Silanteva. |title=IRIS LUDWIGII MAXIM. - IRIS (iris) Ludwig |url=http://lesnoj-atlas.com/page/257/iris-ludwigii-maxim-iris-kasatik-lyudviga.html?group=2 |publisher=lesnoj-atlas.com |accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref> and 5mm wide leaves.<ref name=USSR/> The leaves have 3-7 veins.<ref name=USSR/><ref name=lesnoj/>
 
It has very variable sized stems that can be obsolete or underground,<ref name=signa/> or 2–3&nbsp;cm long,<ref name=USSR/><ref name=pacific>{{cite web |title=Iris summary |date=14 April 2014 |url=http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/files/Iris/Iris_Summary.pdf |format=PDF |publisher=pacificbulbsociety.org |accessdate=23 November 2014}}</ref> or up to {{convert|10|-|20|cm|0|abbr=on}} cm long.<ref name=cassidy/><ref name=america/>

It has lanceolate and green, paper-like [[spathe]]s (leaves of the flower bud).<ref name=signa/><ref name=USSR/><ref name=lesnoj/>

The stems hold 1-2 terminal (top of stem) flowers,<ref name=signa/><ref name=USSR/><ref name=cassidy/> between May and June.<ref name=USSR/><ref name=lesnoj/>
The flowers last on the plant between 6–8 days.<ref name=lesnoj/>

It has flowers that are {{convert|5|-|6|cm|0|abbr=on}} in diameter,<ref name=lesnoj/> that are violet-blue.<ref name=USSR/><ref name=cassidy/><ref name=america/><ref name=lesnoj/><ref name=pacific/>
It has 2 pairs of petals, 3 large [[sepals]] (outer petals), known as the 'falls' and 3 inner, smaller petals (or [[tepals]], known as the 'standards'.<ref name=ClaireAustin>{{cite web| first=Claire | last=Austin | title=Irises A Garden Encyclopedia| pages=274–275 | url=https://worldtracker.org/media/library/Reference/Encyclopedia's/Encyclopedia%20of%20Irises.pdf | format=pdf | publisher=worldtracker.org | accessdate=29 October 2014}}</ref> The falls are lanceolate, with white marks and violet-blue veining. In the centre of the falls is covered with short unicellular hairs,<ref name=USSR/> (looking similar to a yellow beard).<ref name=cassidy/><ref name=america/> The standards are erect, narrow and oblong.<ref name=USSR/>

It has a slender [[Leaf shape|filiform]] (thread-like), perianth tube.<ref name=USSR/><ref name=lesnoj/>

It has linear style branches, that white with violet-blue tips.<ref name=USSR/> It has yellow or white filaments and orange anthers.<ref name=USSR/><ref name=lesnoj/>

After the iris has flowered, it produces a seed capsule (not described) between August and September.<ref name=lesnoj/>

===Biochemistry===
As most irises are [[diploid]], having two sets of [[chromosomes]]. This can be used to identify hybrids and classification of groupings.<ref name=ClaireAustin/>
It has a chromosome count: 2n=38.<ref name=pacific/>

In 2003, a study was carried out on the chromosome sequencing of various Irises from the Siberian region of central Asia. They sequenced the [[RuBisCO|rbcL gene]] from some Siberian Iris species belonging to different subgenera including, ''[[Iris halophila]]'', ''Iris ludwigi'', ''[[Iris uniflora]]'', ''[[Iris pseudacorus]]'', ''[[Iris glaucescens]]'', ''[[Iris tigridia]]'', and ''[[Iris laevigata]]''.
Their results supported Brian Mathew’s classification from 1989. That ''Iris halophila'' and ''Iris ludwigii'' form a cluster.<ref name=phlogenetic>{{cite journal |last=Makarevitch |first=Irina |last2=Golovnina |first2=Kseniya |last3=Scherbik |first3=Svetlana |last4=Blinov |first4=Alexander  |date=2003 |title=Phylogenetic Relationships of the Siberian Iris Species Inferred from Noncoding Chloroplast DNA Sequences |url=http://www.researchgate.net/publication/249158477_Phylogenetic_Relationships_of_the_Siberian_Iris_Species_Inferred_from_Noncoding_Chloroplast_DNA_Sequences |journal=Int. J. Plant Sci. |publisher=The University of Chicago |volume=164 |issue=2 |pages=229–237 |doi= |accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref>

== Taxonomy==
The Latin [[Botanical name#Binary name|specific epithet]] ''ludwigii'' refers to the 18th century Professor of natural history and medicine, [[Christian Gottlieb Ludwig]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Searching Dave's Garden |url=http://davesgarden.com/sitewidesearch.php?q=ludwig |publisher=davesgarden.com  |accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref>

It has the common name of ''Ludwig Iris''.<ref name=russia/><ref name=Burkhatskiy>{{cite web |title=Burkhatskiy Pass |url=http://www.kazakhstan.orexca.com/burkhat_pass_kazakhstan.shtml |publisher=kazakhstan.orexca.com |accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref><ref name=krasnaya>{{cite web |first=B. M. |last=Doronkin |title=Iris (Iris) Ludwig (Iris ludwigii) |url=http://www.calc.ru/krasnaya-kniga/Kasatik-(iris)-Lyudviga.html |publisher=calc.ru |accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref>

It was originally published and described by [[Karl Maximovich|Karl Johann Maximowicz]] in the 'Bulletin of the Academy of Imperial Science, Saint-Pétersburg Vol.26 pages508-509 in 1880.<ref name=ipni>{{cite web|title=Iridaceae Iris ludwigii Maxim. |url=http://www.ipni.org/ipni/idPlantNameSearch.do?id=438817-1 |publisher=ipni.org (International Plant Names Index) |accessdate=14 January 2015}}</ref>

It was later published in Mélanges Biol. Bull. Phys.-Math. Acad. Imp. Sci. Saint-Pétersbourg Vol.10 page721 in 1880 (Diagn. pl. nov. asiat.).<ref name=grin/>

In his book (Iris,1913) [[William Rickatson Dykes]] was once thought ''Iris ludwigii'' to a form of ''[[Iris humilis]]'' with stoloniferous rhizomes,  the Academy of Imperial Science, Saint-Pétersburg did not agree with this.<ref name=USSR/> It was later treated as a separate species by [[Brian Mathew]].<ref name=america/> [[Georgi Rodionenko]] had proposed ''Series Ludwigia'' for this species.<ref name=pacific/>
But after chromosomal studies were carried out it was then placed  in ''Series Spuriae''.<ref name=phlogenetic/>

It was mentioned in 'Vascular Plants of Russia and Adjacent States (the Former USSR)'.<ref>Sergeĭ Kirillovich Cherepanov (1981){{Google books | Vascular Plants of Russia and Adjacent States (the Former USSR) | Up0XgqTk2pkC |page=280}}</ref>

It was verified by [[United States Department of Agriculture]] [[Agricultural Research Service]] on 4 April 2003.<ref name=grin>{{cite web |title=Taxon: Iris ludwigii Maxim. | url=http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?428807 |publisher=ars-grin.gov ([[Germplasm Resources Information Network]]) |accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref>

==Distribution and habitat==
''Iris ludwigii'' is [[native plant|native]] to [[temperateness|temperate]] regions of [[Asia]].<ref name=ipni/><ref name=grin/>

===Range===
It is found in [[Altai Mountains]],<ref name=signa/><ref name=cassidy/><ref name=pacific/><ref name=ipni/> between east [[Kazakhstan]],<ref name=lesnoj/><ref name=krasnaya/><ref name=innature>{{cite web |title=Red Book (Flora) 2 |url=http://innature.kz/viewpage.php?page_id=383 |publisher=innature.kz |accessdate=19 August 2015}}</ref> and [[Siberia]],<ref name=pacific/><ref name=ipni/> and [[Altai Republic]] in [[Russia]].<ref name=USSR/><ref name=grin/>

It is listed with  ''[[Iris bloudowii]]'', ''[[Iris psammocola]]'', ''[[Iris ruthenica]]'', ''[[Iris sibirica]]'', ''[[Iris tenuifolia]]'' and ''[[Iris tigridia]]'' as being found in the [[Altai-Sayan region]] (where Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan come together).<ref>{{cite web |title=Biodiversity of Altai-Sayan Ecoregion |url=http://www.bioaltai-sayan.ru/regnum/eng/species_all.php?right=box-spec-p/iris.php |publisher=bioaltai-sayan.ru |accessdate=15 August 2015}}</ref>

It is also found in the Altai-Dzungarian region of the Altai mountains (between [[Mongolia]] and [[China]]).<ref>{{cite journal |last=Olonova |first=Marina V. |last2=Zhang |first2=Daoyuan |last3=Duan |first3=Shiming |last4=Yin |first4=Linke |last5=Pan |first5=Borong  |date=2010 |title=Rare and endangered plant species of the Chinese Altai Mountains |url=http://jal.xjegi.com/fileup/PDF/38.pdf |journal=Journal of Arid Land |publisher= |volume=2 |issue=3 |pages=222–230 |doi= |accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref>

===Habitat===
It grows on the [[steppe]]s,<ref name=signa/> in meadows, in thickets of ''[[Stipa splendens]]'', and on gravelly slopes.<ref name=USSR/><ref name=lesnoj/>

==Conservation==
It is listed in the [[IUCN]] ''Red Book of the Altai Territory''.<ref name=lesnoj/>

It is at risk due to the effects of cattle grazing, ploughing and other farming methods.<ref name=krasnaya/>

In April 2005, a Working draft of Species Action Plan for ''Iris ludwigii'' was created for the at risk plants on the Altai Mountains.<ref>{{cite web  |title=Darwin Initiative for the Survival of Species Project: 162 / 11 / 025 Cross-border conservation strategies for Altai Mountain endemics (Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan) Annual Report (Year 3) |date=April 2005 |url=http://www.darwininitiative.org.uk/documents/11025/4023/11-025%20AR3%20-%20edited.pdf  |publisher=darwininitiative.org.uk |format=PDF |accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref>

It is mentioned as one of the 17 species of plants are included in the 'Red Book of Kazakhstan', and they are: Steppe peony (''[[Paeonia hybrida]]''), Spring asphodel, (''[[Adonis vernalis]]''), Pink rhodiola (''[[Rhodiola rosea]]''), Altai rhubarb (''[[Rheum altaicum]]''), Altai daphne (''[[Daphne altaica]]''), Snow (''[[Macropodium nivale]]''), Siberian adder's-tongue (''[[Erythronium sibiricum]]''), Maral root (''[[Rhaponticum carthamoides]]''), Vereschagin (''[[Limnas veresczaginii]]''), Heteropetals tulip (''[[Tulipa heteropetala]]''), Small-fruit cranberry (''[[Oxycoccus microcarpus]]''), (''[[Cymbaria dahyrica]]''), Altai anthrax (''[[Sibiraea altaiensis]]''), Stemless (''[[Leiospora excapa]]''), Altai gimnospermium (''[[Gimnospermium altaicum]]'') and Fir club moss (''[[Lycopodium selago]]''). 
5 species of plant were put into the 'Red Book of Russian Federation', they are Steppe peony (''Paeonia hybrida''), Altai rhubarb (''Rheum altaicum''), Altai daphne (''Daphne altaica''), Ludwig iris (''Iris ludwigii'') and Siberian adder's-tongue (''Erythronium sibiricum'').<ref name=russia>{{cite web |title=The exhibition "Iris Russia" |url=http://flower-iris.ru/en/knigi-pro-iridariy/zaglyanut-v-knigu/66/ |publisher=flower-iris.ru |accessdate=23 January 2015}}</ref><ref name=Burkhatskiy/>

==Cultivation==
''Iris ludwigii'' is cultivated as an [[ornamental plant]] for gardens.   It prefers locations in full sun, on soils with good drainage.<ref name=signa/>

In nature and in cultivation, it was found that the plant, flowers but they are [[sterility (physiology)|sterile]] with underdeveloped stamens. Therefore, does not produce seeds.<ref name=russia/>

It is hardy enough to grow and be cultivated in the botanical gardens of [[Barnaul]], [[Novosibirsk]] and [[Chita, Zabaykalsky Krai|Chita]], [[Zabaykalsky Kra]], in Russia. It was trialled at The Botanical Garden of [[St. Petersburg]] in 1971. It bloomed three times but then died after flowering.<ref name=russia/>

==Propagation==
It can be propagated by [[Division (horticulture)|division]] or by seed growing.<ref name=lesnoj/>

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Other sources===
*Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934–1964. Flora SSSR.
*Mathew, B. 1981. The Iris. 113.
*Rare and Endangered Plants of Siberia, 1980

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Iris ludwigii}}
*{{Wikispecies-inline|Iris ludwigii}}

[[Category:Iris (plant)|ludwigii]]
[[Category:Altai Mountains]]
[[Category:Flora of Kazakhstan]]
[[Category:Flora of Mongolia]]
[[Category:Flora of Siberia]]
[[Category:Flora of Xinjiang]]
[[Category:Plants described in 1880]]
[[Category:Garden plants of Asia]]