Iris pallida subsp. illyrica

It has a bluish coloured rhizome,[2] and has flat, curved,[2] or sickle-shaped leaves.[3] The leaves can grow up to 35 cm (14 in) long,[3] and up to 3 cm wide.[2] They can survive the winter.[3] It has a slender stem or peduncles, that can grow up to between 60–100 cm (24–39 in) tall.[3][4] It has branches (or pedicels) near top of the plant.[2][3] The stem has (scarious) membranous,[2] (or translucent) spathes (leaves of the flower bud).[3] Similar to Iris illyrica, the spathes can have a dirty, rusty markings.[3][5] The stems (and the branches) hold between 3 and 8 flowers,[2][3] between May and June.[2] The fragrant flowers,[2][4] come in shades of violet, or pale violet flowers,[5] mauve,[3] lavender,[4] purple, yellow or white.[2] Like other irises, 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'.[6]^: 17 The falls are bent backwards, they have a light brown edge and reddish purple veins.[3] They also have a thick strip of yellow hairs (the 'beard') in the centre.[2][3] The flowers has dry, spheroidal pollen, that are 51–100 µm large.[7] After the iris has flowered, it produces a seed capsule, that has 5 mm long seeds.[2]

Wild plant growing near Niksic in Montenegro

It is commonly known as the southern Adriatic iris,[10][11] It is also known in Croatia as jadranska perunika meaning Adriatic iris.[12]

It was first collected by Ivo Trinajstić on 1 May 1973, and then it was first published and described in 1976.[5][13] Trinajstić treated the plant as a separate species to Iris pallida due to the difference in spathes.[8] Iris pallida typically has silvery white spathes while Iris illyrica and Iris pallida subsp. illyrica have spathes that have a dirty pale rusty tint.[5] In 1991, Nikolic and Mitic also found that the size and shape of epidermal cells and stoma, was another difference, but these could be down to habitat effects.[5]

It was also thought to be related to Iris reichenbachii,[14] but a study on Iris orjenii found various differences.[15] Often plants are called one name and are later changed due to a new study.[16]

Later, the species was classified as a subspecies of Iris pallida, Iris pallida subsp. pseudopallida.[4][5][17] Although, in Croatia, it is still known as Iris pseudopallida.[9][18]

Wild iris growing on Mount Orjen, Montenegro

It is native to Southern Europe.[13]

It has large colonies of plants, but they may be under risk from collection.[3]

Growing in the wild in Montengero

The plants are grown in gardens in Croatia and surrounding countries,[3] and are also available for cultivation elsewhere, used in garden borders.[4]

It can be found in the Biokovo Botanical Garden Kotišina.[20]

Like many other irises, most parts of the plant are poisonous (rhizome and leaves), if mistakenly ingested can cause stomach pains and vomiting. Also handling the plant may cause a skin irritation or an allergic reaction.[22]

Media related to Iris pseudopallida at Wikimedia Commons Data related to Iris pseudopallida at Wikispecies