Iris unguicularis (syn. Iris stylosa), the Algerian iris, is a rhizomatous flowering plant in the genus Iris, native to Algeria, Greece, Turkey, Western Syria, and Tunisia. It grows to , with grassy evergreen leaves, producing pale lilac or purple flowers with a central band of yellow on the falls. The flowers appear in winter and early spring. They are fragrant, with pronounced perianth tubes up to long.
This plant is widely cultivated in temperate regions, and numerous cultivars have been selected for garden use, including a slightly more tender white form 'Alba', and a dwarf variety I. unguicularis subsp. cretensis. The cultivar 'Mary Barnard' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
Chemistry In 2013, a chemical analysis study was carried on Iris loczyi and Iris unguicularis as both plants are known as medicinally important.Q. Ashton Acton The rhizome of Iris unguicularis contains 1,3-O-diferuloylsucrose, 5,7-dihydroxy-6-methoxychromone, irilone, 4′,5,7-trihydroxy-6-methoxyflavanone, tectorigenin, kaempferol, 4′,5,7-trihydroxy-3′,8-dimethoxyflavanone, 8-methoxyeriodictyol, hispidulin and mangiferin.New and Known Constituents from Iris unguicularis and Their Antioxidant Activity. Atta-ur-Rahman, Sumaira Hareem, M. Iqbal Choudhary, Bilge Sener, Ahmed Abbaskhan, Hina Siddiqui, Shazia Anjum, Ilkay Orhan, Ilhan Gurbuz and Filiz Ayanoglu, HeteroCycles, 2010, Special issue, Vol 82, No. 1, pages 813-824,
References