Last fall, my handyman put dirt over the iris corms, covered them entirely,
I failed to notice it, and as a result, I only got 2 blooms this year out of
a whole bed. Devastating.

In previous years, I had great blooms and a nice long span of blossoms, so
the soil and light are appropriate.

I rinsed an inch or more of dirt off the corms, but they look so nekkid and
exposed (about half out of the dirt, some a little more, some a little
less), then I got to worrying about how much of the corm IS supposed to be
exposed, for optimal blooms next year. Don't want the corms damaged by
severe weather if we get it this winter.

So how much should be above the soil? A third? Half? Spill!

I tore out a bed of orange daylilies next to the iris bed to plant more iris
this fall, about 4 weeks ago. Is it OK that the new corms (which were dried
out and topless when bought) are making shoots, and have 3-5 inches of new
growth? They got some organic bulb booster about 2 weeks after they were
planted, so they wouldn't use up their strength this fall and have nothing
left for spring.

Anxiously awaiting advice, I adore my iris,

laurie (Mother Mastiff)

"laurie (Mother Mastiff)" wrote
in message .. .
| Last fall, my handyman put dirt over the iris corms, covered
them entirely,
| I failed to notice it, and as a result, I only got 2 blooms
this year out of
| a whole bed. Devastating.
|
| In previous years, I had great blooms and a nice long span of
blossoms, so
| the soil and light are appropriate.
|
| I rinsed an inch or more of dirt off the corms, but they look
so nekkid and
| exposed (about half out of the dirt, some a little more, some a
little
| less), then I got to worrying about how much of the corm IS
supposed to be
| exposed, for optimal blooms next year. Don't want the corms
damaged by
| severe weather if we get it this winter.
|
| So how much should be above the soil? A third? Half? Spill!
|
| I tore out a bed of orange daylilies next to the iris bed to
plant more iris
| this fall, about 4 weeks ago. Is it OK that the new corms
(which were dried
| out and topless when bought) are making shoots, and have 3-5
inches of new
| growth? They got some organic bulb booster about 2 weeks after
they were
| planted, so they wouldn't use up their strength this fall and
have nothing
| left for spring.
|
| Anxiously awaiting advice, I adore my iris,
|
| laurie (Mother Mastiff)

Laurie,
Here's the website and a couple of snippets I've used in the
past:

From http://www.schreinersgardens.com/iri...html#irisca
Plant your Iris so that the tops of the rhizomes are exposed and
the roots are facing downward. A common mistake is to plant Iris
too deeply. Keep the tops of the rhizomes one inch below soil
level. Use a general fertilizer such as 10-20-10. After planting
keep them moist, not allowing the rhizomes to dry out.

(When planting or transplanting mine, I make a ditch for, and
cover, the roots and leave the rhizone mostly exposed. I had
almost 100% blooming this year).


We recommend covering newly planted Iris, especially in areas
with cold winters. Soil, straw, pine needles, and leaves are all
effective covers. Remove the cover as early as possible in the
spring. Early planting will also help your Iris become
established before the first winter.
HTH,
Raleighgirl
|

When we lived in Colorado, I talked to a guy who raises them as a business.
He said you could just lay them on the ground and they would be OK. He also
said that you should transplant them as soon as they quit blooming. That
way most of them will bloom the following year. Otherwise they may not
bloom until the second summer after transplanting.

Dwayne


"laurie (Mother Mastiff)" wrote in message
.. .
Last fall, my handyman put dirt over the iris corms, covered them
entirely,
I failed to notice it, and as a result, I only got 2 blooms this year out
of
a whole bed. Devastating.

In previous years, I had great blooms and a nice long span of blossoms, so
the soil and light are appropriate.

I rinsed an inch or more of dirt off the corms, but they look so nekkid
and
exposed (about half out of the dirt, some a little more, some a little
less), then I got to worrying about how much of the corm IS supposed to be
exposed, for optimal blooms next year. Don't want the corms damaged by
severe weather if we get it this winter.

So how much should be above the soil? A third? Half? Spill!

I tore out a bed of orange daylilies next to the iris bed to plant more
iris
this fall, about 4 weeks ago. Is it OK that the new corms (which were
dried
out and topless when bought) are making shoots, and have 3-5 inches of new
growth? They got some organic bulb booster about 2 weeks after they were
planted, so they wouldn't use up their strength this fall and have nothing
left for spring.

Anxiously awaiting advice, I adore my iris,

laurie (Mother Mastiff)

"Dwayne" wrote in message
...
He said you could just lay them on the ground and they would be OK.

Reminded me of a story my grandmother loves to tell about irises she never
got
around to planting - they got laid in a grocery bag on the shady side of the
back porch and forgotten about until the next spring, when she had the
most beautiful patch of irises in her life - that accidental iris bed
spawned
decades of gorgeous flowers.

"Dwayne" wrote in message
...
He said you could just lay them on the ground and they would be OK.

Reminded me of a story my grandmother loves to tell about irises she never
got
around to planting - they got laid in a grocery bag on the shady side of the
back porch and forgotten about until the next spring, when she had the
most beautiful patch of irises in her life - that accidental iris bed
spawned
decades of gorgeous flowers.

On Fri, 28 Oct 2005 12:48:46 GMT, wrote:


"Dwayne" wrote in message
...
He said you could just lay them on the ground and they would be OK.

Reminded me of a story my grandmother loves to tell about irises she never
got
around to planting - they got laid in a grocery bag on the shady side of the
back porch and forgotten about until the next spring, when she had the
most beautiful patch of irises in her life - that accidental iris bed
spawned
decades of gorgeous flowers.

Yeah, in the '40's my dad pulled out a bunch of iris my grandma didn't
want anymore and threw them behind the garage (2 feet wide area
between the wall and a fence. They were just thrown there and bloomed
beautifully. Oh, if only I had some of them now. I just love those
gorgeous old fashioned bronzie ones.
Kira