What is "iris foetidissima"

gladdon \glad"don\ n. An iris ( Iris foetidissima) with purple flowers and evil-smelling leaves; Southern and Western Europe and North Africa.

Syn: gladen, stinking iris, gladdon iris, stinking gladwyn, roast beef plant, Iris foetidissima.

Gladen \Gla"den\, n. [AS. gl[ae]dene, cf. L. gladius a sword. Cf. Gladiole.] (Bot.) Sword grass; any plant with sword-shaped leaves, especially the European Iris f[oe]tidissima. [Written also gladwyn, gladdon, and glader.]

Iris foetidissima (Stinking iris, gladdon, Gladwin iris, roast-beef plant, stinking gladwin), is a species of iris found in open woodland, hedgebanks and sea-cliffs.

Its natural range is Western Europe, including England south of Durham and also Ireland, and from France south and east to N. Africa, Italy and Greece. It is one of two iris species native to Britain, the other being the yellow iris ( Iris pseudacorus). Its flowers are usually of a dull, leaden-blue colour, or dull buff-yellow tinged with blue; the capsules, which remain attached to the plant throughout the winter, are 5–8 cm long; and the seeds scarlet.

It is known as "stinking" because some people find the smell of its leaves unpleasant when crushed or bruised, an odour that has been described as "beefy".

This plant is cultivated in gardens in the temperate zones. Both the species and its cultivar 'Variegata' have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.