June 26th- July 1st, 2026 is Summer-Middle of GESHI (Summer solstice)-29th KOU “HANASHOBU (Japanese (water) irises) bloom.”
HANASHOBU has been loved by Japanese people since old days. Particularly during the Edo period, it appears that large-scale selective breeding was carried out. Then, now, there are said to be as many as 5,000 different varieties.
I don’t see them very often in my neighborhood. What I do see frequently are AYAME (Japanese irises) and KAKITSUBATA (rabbit-ear irises).
These HANASHOBU here began blooming around late May without waiting for the 29th KOU, and reached full bloom in early June. However, as of yesterday, their peak viewing period looked already passed.
Many of the descriptions in the 72 KOU calendar tend to run about a month ahead of the actual seasonal progression in SHINSHU region. However, the 29th KOU “HANASHOBU” is an exception, as it occurred later than the actual timing.
I wonder if one of the reasons is that the average temperatures in NAGANO City during April and May were significantly higher than usual.
2026/06/25