When you say "Tall Bearded" you narrow the field somewhat. There are Border Bearded and Intermediate Bearded or Standard Dwarf Bearded that would appear on many peoples favorite iris list.
1. Dusky Challenger
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It is tall, Very good bud count, the flowers open on the stem with good spacing, it's pretty, hardy, and increases decently without becoming weedy.
Blue is a tougher catagory because there are a lot of beautiful iris in it. There are different "Blues"
Deep Dark Secret
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Paul Black
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Sea Power
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Yaquina Blue
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Pink is easy for me:
Happenstance
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It's a very consistent, hardy, good looking iris. A pink with a prettier flower is Kitty Kay.
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Yellow is a tough catagory like Blue that is overcrowded with sensational iris.
Here is a poor picture of a really outstanding Yellow that Paul Black will introduce someday. It is TALL. You spot it from way accross the garden.
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Bicolors also are a very crowded field.
They are also likely to change favorites from year to year.
This year a few of my favoites were
Strike a Pose
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Parisian Dawn
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Undercurrent
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It also depends if you're into the modern form or the historical form.

Y E L L O W

IRISH TUNE: An older greenish-light yellow.
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RISING MOON: mimosa yellow with a little touch of white. A great grower and flowers every year for me.
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TRUMPET CALL: Modern yellow, also a great grower.
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P U R P L E

GHOST TRAIN: A dark purple; modern.
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MIDNIGHT HOUR: Purple self.
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MYSTIQUE: Purple bitone. Lots of people say it grows great, but I haven't had much luck with it.
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PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE: A classic. My first iris and still a great grower.
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SABLE: Classic historic variety, not to be confused with 'Sable Night.'
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SUPERSTITION: More maroon than purple, but consistently ranked as one of the more popular bearded iris in the U.S.
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B L U E

BLUE RHYTHM: Historic Variety and winner of the 1940 Dykes Medal.
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OVER ALASKA: Nice modern blue bitone.
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PARISIAN BLUE: Historic blue and important in developing many Schreiner blues.
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VICTORIA FALLS: Nothing in my garden grows as good as this. Won the Dykes Medal in 1984
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P I N K

DOGROSE: Historic with nice form.
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GIANT ROSE: Large flowering historic.
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SOCIAL EVENT: Nice round form.

B I - C O L O R

BOLD FASHION: Technically an amonea, but worth a good mention.

DUSKY EVENING: If you like the unusual.

LET'S BOOGIE: Very nice yellow and wine combination.

OPAL BEAUTY: Nice historic.

SUTTER'S FALLS: More of a blend.

Thank you both. Oh, my goodness! I want them all!! They are all so beautiful! What nurseries do you recommend?

Many excellent online nurseries. Denise at SNOWPEAK is highly praised. Her prices are excellent with a large selection and good pictures at her site. (some sites have off-color pics --- most frustrating when it blooms different than expected)

Beautiful pictures!

Shadow

This is going to sound like a dumb question, but is Dogrose really as pretty as that picture?

Dogrose is just as nice as the picture. It's extra long beards and smooth finish really make it stand out.

Carlos

Thanks, Carlos. That's another for my want list.

Mine is a plain Jane next to the beautiful colored iris above, but if I had to name mine I'd choose "The Terminator." These were mystery bulbs, dug up by landscapers nearby and were going to be thrown out. Last winter I stuck them in the ground, clay soil, no fertilizer, full summer sun up to 110, cold to the 20s, ferocious winds...typical California high desert climate.

Beginning in November the iris began sending up flowers, up to eight on a stalk, some flowers as big as an outstretched hand, fragrance strong and sweet as honey. The irises have continuously sent up new stalks since November, actually increasing in number. The tallest stalk with a bloom is 44". On each stalk it is as if there are two "phases" of flowering. One group of buds will open and then the other four or so buds on the same stalk will open.

Needless to say, these irises have more than paid me back for rescuing them.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1011317}}

I would go with gmason's recommendations. Dusky Challenger is hard to beat. And anything Keith Keppel puts out is outstanding. I would send Keith an email and get his free catalog. It contains his 2006 introductions and also dozens of other intro's going back several years. His email address: plicataman@earthlink.net
Enjoy

Billy

Oh my! After seeing those pictures, I definitely need to go Iris shopping.

Melanie

The most beautiful TB in my yard is just white. It is called Skating Party. It is very tall, big, ruffled and prolific.

Ok, I'm chompping at the bit!!!I sometimes check my Iris two or three times aday to see if any are about to bloom. Finally this morning I found a few more bloom stalks on some of my newer ones. I had the older white one bloom this past week. The older purple that everyone has, is about to bloom out, maybe by Sunday. Total Recall, my favorite, should be blomming in a week and I found some stalks on a few unknowns. Yes, finally!!!Blooms! I'm quite sure I',m rushing the blooms season, it's only March but when it gets to be 80 outside I really need to see blooms.

Your pictures are so very great. I've wanted "DogRose" for years. Maybe this year. Thanks so much for sharing,and may God bless each and everyone with his loving Grace, Mona

gmason, do you have any of the Iris you posted to spare?
My mom will pay postage and wants some other than her basic ones so I told her I would look for some.
If anyone else has any pretty named ones please do let me know and send pics with name of them.
Thanks
Sunny

I would have to say 'Edith Wolford' (pix of it available all over the web). I have a soft spot for those yellow and blue combinations, she's a beauty.

- Steve

I'll second 'Edith Wolford'! It's a wonderful color combination, and increases well. There are so many, it's very hard to choose a favorite. I also like 'Superstition,' a deep wine-purple self (it's often listed as black, and looks close to that color in shade). One of the most beautiful irises I've ever seen is a historic, 'Alice Harding,' a soft buttery yellow self, so elegant.

Laurel

This is all that have bloomed so far for me and i dont know the names, but someone can ID for you if you like one of the photos. Actually go ahead and ID them for me, if anyone looks at this thread again so i'll know.

By the way the first one, the solid lavender, has the tallest fans of any iris i know of , the leaves are over 3 ft tall, sometimes taller then the bloom stalk itself, as you can see in the pic, it has a leaf by it on the right side, very dramtic i think to have tall fans.

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The middle one looks like INDIAN CHIEF and the last one looks like LULLABY OF SPRING. These are only guesses though.

Carlos

For the deepest of deep purple," Before the Storm".
For the goldest of yellow "Gold Galore."
Atleast in my garden that I am now putting in. Anyone else have any thoughts?