Iris time!

Iris are a Sierra foothill gardener’s best friend in Spring because of the easy care and reliable beauty. Because they occasionally have to be divided, they are a common ‘pass along’ plant. Here’s a few favorites, your advice and how to divide irises.

‘Iris,’ was the goddess of the rainbow, the messenger of the Olympian gods, and the flower named for her has a rainbow of flower colors.  Iris is one of the oldest garden flowers, the hardiest and often the only remnant of any long abandoned home garden.

Spring here in the foothills it means a trip to this iris farm!  Just look!  This is Superstition Iris Gardens in Cathey’s Valley, CA They do all their business by email if you’re not local. Awesome place!

During an April visit, I was overwhelmed by this huge field of color!  The way I could decided which iris to order was to scan the field of blooming ‘every color’ iris with squinted eyes and pick out which ones jumped out at me!

These are just the tall iris. They had several rows of mini iris and all the plants had small cards stapled to them identifying the name and habit and price.

 

Above is one of the iris I ‘picked’ at the iris farm. It’s a reblooming variety and blooms in Fall as well as Spring! And below is the one I picked to compliment it…

 

 

 

Cherrie Carine says, “ Sue, I was given this Iris as a gift from my neighbor…I love the color, but he didn’t know the name of it… is there anyone who thinks they know what this Iris is called?”

 

Jeannie  DiMauro says, “I don’t know much about Iris, but oh my,… I have to love the fact they’re so easy to grow! I especially like coming across a long abandoned homestead or a ditch where someone once tossed a few Iris rhizomes and, over the years, they’d turned into a glorious display! When I lived in the country I used to make a point of watching for such a patch growing along a small ditch in Hempstead, Texas…. and now each spring I anticipate a small clump of yellow Iris expanding each year alongside a busy city street.”

 

Susan McKinney says, “ I’m not sure of the name of this. It was growing all over the place at an Arby’s and I asked the manager if I could have a root of it and he said yes and it still lives in my yard today. I used to carry a shovel and bucket with me everywhere I went in case I needed it and it came in handy this time!”

 

How to plant iris

The new transplants should have a firm rhizome with roots and a fan of leaves. Remove and discard the old rhizomes and only replant the younger smaller rhizomes that grow off of the older stems.
Iris appreciates a sunny well-drained garden spot. When planting iris, again, soak the soil if it is very hard. Dig holes about five inches deep. Build a small mound in the middle of each hole and plant the rhizome firmly on top of the mound and let the roots fall down the mound.

Cover the roots with soil and leave the rhizome is just slightly exposed. Do not plant the rhizome too deep or it may rot. One good design is planting iris 12-18 inches apart in groups of three to seven sections of one variety. Usually the rhizomes are planted so the leaf fans face in one direction or in a circle. So, if your iris patch is producing very few flowers, it’s time to divide!

 

 

Divide Iris and conquer

The best time to divide and transplant iris rhizomes is late July through September, so the new plants will have plenty of time to become established before really cold weather sets in.
Iris loves the heat and drier weather of summer and the summer dividing will reduce the incidence of bacterial soft rot. Most  iris should be divided every three to five years.

When transplanting iris, first soak the hard soil with a hose or sprinkler for a few minutes. Cut back the leaves to about one third of their height. Lift the entire clump with a spade or digging fork. Use a sharp knife or just crack the rhizomes apart to separate them.

Karen Settles I absolutely love Irises. Right now I only have six different kinds and I get my starts from friend. Twice I have dug some up and transplanted them from old abandoned homesteads way out in the country. Those two are my favorites. . Wonder why?

Jeanne Peterson I am so lucky to have been given, many years ago, iris rhizomes, by my grandmother, father, and great aunt. I would love to add to the hundreds I have, but can no longer physically garden. Enjoy them! They are wonderful, carefree plants.

 

 

Geek alert! An excuse to say ‘remontant’

Although the most familiar type of iris is the bearded iris, the iris family includes more than 200 species including some North American natives, like the Douglas iris in the West and Virginia iris  in the eastern US. Iris are separated into two major groups – rhizomatous and bulbous. Rhizomes are horizontally growing underground stems that are used as food storage for the plant. The common bearded iris falls into this group as well as the beardless Siberian and Japanese iris. “Rebloomers” (also called “remontants”) are irises that produce two or more flushes of bloom each year.

If you go:

Superstition Iris Gardens
Richard Tasco & Roger Duncan
April 27-May13 (Fri,Sat,Sun 10 AM to 5 PM), other times/days by appt..
2536 Old Highway, Dept. H
Catheys Valley, California 95306-9738
Email:  randrcv@sierratel.com
Phone: (209) 966-6277