Wilkerson seedling #2611 bloom
Wilkerson seedling #1907-10 Re
National Convention in St. Louis. Many surgeries
occurred, requiring significant physical therapy and
recuperation. She would use spring and fall bloom as
motivation in her recoveries. Coupled with extreme
weather at times, her best seedlings suffered from
inevitable neglect. She could only look out the
window and hope for the best. Her
daughter Sherri and son Chris were
able to help her in 2015 and 2016.
The garden received a badly needed
makeover, and the seedling plantings
thrived. Summer and fall flowering
in Scottsville was spectacular and
brought my close friend lots of joy
and hope in 2016. Seedlings from
Wilkerson Cross Pollination #2611
stood out. There was a yellow
amoena with blue beards. Big blocky
flowers had ruffles and substance.
Another #2611 seedling bloomed at
JSRCC in mid- October. It was an
eyecatcher too!!
Besides cool season reblooming
Betty Wilkerson
irises, Betty Wilkerson’s garden also featured daffodil,
herbaceous peony and daylily collections. A nice
show for everyone to see. Betty was dedicated to her
family. Son Chris lived nearby with three daughters.
She would help her grandchildren with homework
during afterschool visits and enjoyed watching their
softball and marching band activities. After her
passing, the family took her remains back to her
Wilkerson seedling TB 2019-03
native Arkansas to be with her departed parents.
My close friend and fellow Eastern rebloom
breeder was determined to leave a written record
of her hybridizing activities in the public domain
to benefit future cool season tall bearded rebloom
breeding. Betty’s articles appeared regularly on
the AIS Blog and I am told her
viewpoints always sparked lively
online discussions. Wilkerson
kept meticulous records. She was
instrumental in getting me to record
daily high and low temperature
readings in my area. These
observations would prove valuable
in predicting the size and scope of
rebloom in summer and fall. The
data also helped me to make better
decisions on seedlings and future
cross pollination efforts. Her passing
has been a major adjustment for me.
My last telephone conversation
with Betty Wilkerson before her
death in early April last year ended
with this exchange. “Mike, guess we really haven’t
made much progress on cool season rebloom have we?
I paused for a moment, “I guess you’re right... We’ve
known the answer to that one for awhile...” Rest in
peace Betty Wilkerson, it was an honor and a privilege
to have known you and work on rebloom development
with you.
d
For more information or to obtain a named Betty Wilkerson variety, contact Mike Lockatell:
CMarti8855 @verizon.net • (804) 330-2916
Spring 2018 AIS Bulletin 15