Product Field NotesCompanion Plants
Butter and Sugar Siberian Iris: Cream and Yellow Before Lavender
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Butter and Sugar Siberian iris is a landmark variety: creamy white upright petals over butter-yellow falls, both finely veined in greenish yellow. The flowers have crisp, well-balanced form, and it has won a top award for Siberian irises, the Morgan-Wood Medal. Established clumps sometimes rebloom later in the season.
It is an easy, tough perennial with one important difference from lavender: it likes steadier moisture. That makes it a neighbor rather than a bedmate, best placed in a moister border nearby where its early June flowers open just before the lavender begins.
Butter and Sugar at a glance
| Trait | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Botanical name | Iris sibirica 'Butter and Sugar' |
| Flowers | Creamy white standards over butter-yellow falls, veined greenish yellow |
| Foliage | Narrow, grass-like, mid-green |
| Size | About 28 inches tall, 18 to 24 inches wide |
| Bloom | Early to mid-June, sometimes reblooming later |
| Hardiness | USDA zones 3 to 9 |
| Light | Full sun to part shade |
| Deer | Resistant |
Where it fits in a lavender garden
Think of the space just beyond your lavender: the border along a lawn that gets watered, a rain garden that catches roof runoff or the moist ground near a pond. Butter and Sugar thrives there. Its bloom in early to mid-June overlaps the very start of lavender season, so the cream and yellow irises hand off to the purple lavender as the weeks go on.
Yellow is a natural complement to purple, and the soft, buttery version here is gentle enough to sit beside lavender without shouting. After bloom, the slender, vase-shaped clump of grassy leaves stays tidy all summer, a fine-textured green backdrop. The Companion Plant Planner can help you place the moist border and the dry lavender bed side by side.
Planting and care
- Soil: average to rich, kept moist, especially in spring and early summer.
- Water: deeply in hot, dry spells to keep the foliage fresh after bloom.
- After bloom: remove spent flower stems.
- Cleanup: cut foliage back in late fall or early spring. Established clumps need no winter mulch.
- Dividing: split crowded clumps in late summer.
- Black walnut: Siberian iris is not bothered by it, which makes it useful near walnut trees.
Siberian irises are rarely troubled. Iris leaf spot shows up now and then, rot is a risk only in waterlogged soil, and iris borer is much less of a problem than on bearded irises.
For the vase
Butter and Sugar rates well as a cut flower. Cut stems when the first bud is just opening and the rest will follow indoors. A few iris stems with early lavender spikes make a soft yellow, white and purple bouquet.
Ordering format
Butter and Sugar is offered as a bare root plant. See the product page for current availability.
Frequently asked questions
How is a Siberian iris different from a bearded iris?
Siberian irises have narrow, grassy leaves, smaller and more delicate flowers, and fewer pest problems. They also prefer more moisture than bearded irises.
Is it fragrant?
It has no notable fragrance. Its draw is the clean cream and yellow color.
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