Northwest Blooms · Perennials
Iris 'Coffee Trader'
Coffee Trader Iris
- Family
- Iridaceae
- Height
- 34 in to 38 in
- Width
- 18 in to 24 in
- Flower color
- Creamy tan standards with soft lavender undertones
- Foliage color
- Blue green sword shaped foliage with an upright fan shaped growth habit
- Bloom time
- Mid to late spring
- Light
- Full sun
- Water
- Low to moderate
- Maintenance
- Low; remove spent flower stalks and divide clumps every few years
- Growing zone
- USDA zones 3 to 9
- Wildlife
- Butterflies and pollinators attracted to spring flowers
About this plant
Iris 'Coffee Trader' produces ruffled flowers in blended coffee, caramel, and silvery blue tones, blooming in late spring and bringing layered color to the garden. Upright, sword-like leaves are blue-green and form clean fans that provide a strong vertical framework through the season. The flowers rise above the foliage on sturdy stems, with warm coffee-toned standards, falls in soft lavender-blue tones, and an orange beard running down the center of each fall, adding texture and depth during bloom.
Originating through modern hybrid breeding, this cultivar reflects selection focused on nuanced coloration and refined flower form. It is well suited to borders, cottage gardens, and mixed perennial plantings, where its late spring bloom and sculptural foliage provide seasonal structure and lasting interest.
Works well in
Borders · Sun Gardens · Pollinator Gardens · Waterwise Gardens · Cut Flower Gardens
Companion plants
Garden phlox · Black-eyed Susans · Daylilies · Lavender · Coreopsis · Russian sage
Design tip
Spring bloom is its headline moment, and it reads best in a group rather than as a single plant. Give it open sun and room to fill out, and repeat it in threes or fives so the planting reads as one sweep instead of scattered dots.
Where to see it
This plant can be seen at Schreiner’s Iris Gardens.
