Dawn with the Iris King: Remembering William Rickatson Dykes

November 4, 1877

Today we celebrate the birth of William Rickatson Dykes [RICK-et-sun DYKES], born in Bayswater, London.

Though he began his career as a classics teacher at Charterhouse School, it was his passion for irises that would ultimately define his legacy.

Like many great plant lovers, Dykes' journey into botany began with a fortuitous meeting.

While studying at Oxford, he encountered Sir Michael Foster [FOS-ter], who introduced him to the enchanting world of irises. This chance meeting sparked a lifelong obsession that would transform our understanding of these rainbow-hued flowers.

In his garden at Godalming [GOD-ul-ming], Dykes created what became a living laboratory for iris research. He was known to appear in his dressing gown at dawn, rushing to his artist F.H. Round with freshly opened iris blooms that needed to be painted immediately. Such was his dedication to capturing these fleeting moments of botanical beauty.

His masterwork, The Genus Iris (1913), featured 48 exquisite color plates and became the definitive work on iris classification. Dykes' attention to detail was legendary - he would notice the tiniest characteristics, such as the small black spots visible when holding an iris leaf up to the light, a detail that helped identify water-loving species.

Tragically, Dykes' life was cut short at age 48 in a car accident on December 1, 1925, just days after receiving the prestigious Victoria Medal of Honour from the Royal Horticultural Society.

But his legacy lives on through the Dykes Medal, established in 1926, which remains the highest honor in iris breeding to this day.