You have a new iris that you created and wish to eventually sell it. The first step is to register it with the American Iris Society.
Considerations
There are a number of things you must consider first:
- What is the class of iris, example TB for tall bearded? What is the height of your iris? A tall bearded iris must be at least 27 ½ inches high.
- Is there any secondary information or subclass for your iris. For example, is it space age, does it rebloom, or if an arilbred (AB), is it (OGB, OGB-), etc.. If you are registering an arilbred it is a good idea to know all the subclasses, which is based on how much aril content is in your seedling.
- What is the season of bloom? This is based on your location. It is good to catalog the dates of your bloom. You will then know if your iris is early, mid (season) or late.
- You should also know the color of your iris, particularly the color of the standards, style arms, falls and beard. Many modern irises are a blend of many colors and veining. It is a good idea to have a color chart if your colors do not fall into standard colors such as purple, yellow, white, pink, etc.
- Does your iris have any other descriptive features, such as horns or flounces at the end of the beards, or a signal?
- Does your iris have any fragrance and is it slight, pronounced, sweet, spicy or musky.
- Finally, you should know the parentage of your iris. Remember the pod parent is always listed first in your parentage, followed by the pollen parent. Your parentage can be simple if using two registered irises, or complex if one of the parents is a seedling that has more than one iris in its cross.
Starting Your Registration
Register your iris online using the AIS integrated system under the Iris Registration menu. If you have never registered an iris before, you will need to create an account to use this system. Alternatively, you can print out a registration form here and mail your registration to the AIS Registrar.
Print Registration Forms and Instructions:
There is a printable PDF form and a fillable PDF form. The printable form may be downloaded, printed, and filled out manually. It may then mailed to the Registrar or scanned and emailed to the Registrar. The fillable PDF may be downloaded and saved as a re-useable file. It may be opened and filled out electronically using Adobe Reader, saved for each registration, and emailed to the Registrar.
Download the printable PDF Single Page Registration Form.
Download the Fillable PDF Single Page Registration Form.
Download the Registration Form Instructions.
Download a printable PDF add-on Parentage Tree Page.
Download a Fillable PDF add-on Parentage Tree Page.
(It is advisable to download the Registration Form Instructions along with the form you want to use.)The above files are provided as downloadable Adobe Acrobat PDF type files. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view or fill-in the fillable files. Adobe Acrobat Reader is free software for viewing and printing Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) files on all major hardware and operating system platforms. It is a very useful add on program that many people already have installed on their computer. If you need to get the free Adobe Acrobat Reader program use this link. Click here Adobe Reader
Completed Registration Forms are sent to:
Registrar-Recorder:
Janis Shackelford, PO Box 21827, El Cajon, CA 92021
Phone: (619) 561-6323 | Email: aisregistrar@irises.org
Choosing A Name
Once you are ready to register your iris, you should choose a name. It is best to go to the online iris register Register Search to preview your name. There is a search button at the top of the page where you can type in your name.
Your search will give you possible name conflicts or whether your name is already used. It is also a good idea to know the name restrictions. Restrictions on names are on the registration instructions/regulations page Iris Registration – American Iris Society. If is a good idea to go here if you never registered an iris before.
Stepping Through the Registration Process
Once you have chosen a name you are ready to start your registration. You will need to take the following steps:
- Put in your iris name. If you are not doing it online, which provides instant confirmation, it is a good idea to come up with alternative names.
- You will then need to put in the classification. If you are not familiar with the AIS classification, then you should go to the classification page Classification – American Iris Society.
- You will then put in your seedling number, height of your stalk, bloom season, color of the standards, color of the style arms, color of the falls, color of the beard, whether there are any beard appendages, blaze or signal and whether there is any fragrance.
- Enter your parentage.
- You will need to submit a photograph of your iris. The photo should be a minimum of 500 KB but it is best if it is greater than 1MB.
- You will need to pay a fee to the AIS to register your iris, see the registration page for current fees. The fee varies based on whether this is a North American registrant or outside of North America. (On-line submitters can pay through that system otherwise you will need to submit payment with your registration forms.)
Finally, if you are not ready to register your iris but want to reserve a name, you can do that on the integrated system. On the iris registration page, you have a choice of reserving a name or registering a new cultivar. If you choose to reserve a name it will allow you to reserve your name. Your reserved name is valid for three years plus the current year. There is the same fee to reserve your name as there is to register an iris. Once you decide to use your name on a new cultivar, you will not have to pay an additional fee. If you don’t use your name within the time required, it will be released for others to use.
submitted by hybridizer Howie Dash