Not the plant you're looking for? Search over 300,000 plants

Herbaceous Perennial

Iris 'Scent of Chocolate' (AB)

iris 'Scent of Chocolate'

A rhizomatous perennial, to just over 1m high in flower, with upright, sword-shaped, grey-green leaves. Flowers are sweetly scented, with violet-coloured standards with darker veins, reddish purple falls touched with yellow at the base, and an orange and purple beard

Save to My plants

Buy this plant

Plant nurseries
1 suppliers

Ultimate height

1–1.5 metres

Time to ultimate height

2–5 years

Ultimate spread

0.1–0.5 metres

Loam

Sand

Moisture

Moist but well–drained, Well–drained

pH

Acid, Neutral

	Stem	Flower	Foliage	Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Full sun

Aspect

South–facing or West–facing

Exposure

Sheltered

Hardiness
Hardiness ratings
All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets
H1a: under glass all year (>15C)
H1b: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
H1c: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)

Botanical details

Family: Iridaceae
Native to GB / Ireland: No
Foliage: Deciduous
Habit: Clump forming
Potentially harmful: Harmful if eaten. Wear gloves and other protective equipment when handling. Pets: Harmful if eaten. For further information and contact numbers regarding pets, see the HTA guide to potentially harmful plants
Genus: Iris may be rhizomatous or bulbous perennials, with narrow leaves and erect stems bearing flowers with 3 large spreading or pendent fall petals, alternating with 3 erect, often smaller, standard petals, in late winter, spring or early summer
Name status: Accepted
Horticultural Group: Arilbred irises are bearded irises derived by hybridisation between Oncocyclus or Regelia groups and other bearded irises. They have medium-sized flowers from spring to early summer

How to grow

Cultivation

Thrives in a sunny position, in neutral to slightly acid soil with good drainage. Plant rhizomes just above soil level, as sun on the rhizomes encourages flowering. Plants should be kept fairly dry during summer dormancy. See bearded iris cultivation

Propagation

Propagate by division, see dividing irises

Suggested planting locations and garden types

City and courtyard gardens
Cottage and informal garden
Flower borders and beds
Wall side borders

Pruning

Remove spent flower stems and foliage after flowering; plants are summer dormant

Pests

May be susceptible to aphids, slugs, snails and thrips

Diseases

May be susceptible to leaf spots, rust diseases, rhizome rot and viruses; see Iris diseases for more details

Get involved

The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.