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Last Updated: Jan 10, 2007 - 10:15:57 AM |
If you’ve never grown an iris before, then welcome to the wonderful world rhizomes! You may already be familiar with the iris as a flower bulb. However, the true definition of a “bulb” is a bit elusive as a bulb is technically any plant that stores nutrient reserves underground. Corms, true bulbs tubers, tuberous roots, and rhizomes are sometimes all lumped into the category of 'bulb.' Although they have slight differences, these plants all have underground structures that are capable of growing a new plant.
As Rhizomes, irises grow underground horizontally. This helps to distinguish them from other kinds of “bulbs” that grow and/or spread in other ways. This site on flower gardening has definitions of the different kinds of "bulbs." As an iris plant grows, the horizontal growths of the rhizomes slowly extend and new plants then pop out of the soil adjacent to the original plant. Other examples of rhizomes are lily-of-the-valley, bamboos, and grasses. Irises are considered quite hardy as they have the ability to store food for later growth in the rhizomes.
The iris plant has beautiful large flowers that bloom in the spring. Occasionally, an iris will produce a second set of blooms in the fall. Try any variety known as “rebloomers” if you want a higher chance of fall blooms. Irises are available in a large variety of colors so you can have fun mixing and matching and coordinating with your existing plants. Bearded irises have a hairy “beard” in the middle of some of the petals. Bearded irises come in pinks, blues, purples, reds, white, yellows, and combinations of theses colors. A typical iris grows between one to three feet tall, so you can use them as a background for groundcovers or as a foreground flower for small shrubs and taller flowers.
While irises are painless to grow and can thrive in virtually any soil, they do not like soil that is soggy. However, they can withstand rather dry conditions and even drought. Of course, it’s preferable that you properly water and take care of your iris so that they can achieve their true beauty. Well drained soil is a must, and iris do very well in raised beds as you can easy improve the soil so that it drains well. A soil pH of six to seven will work best for vigorous growth.
You’ll need to follow a few other basic tips to grow iris successfully. You can plant the iris rhizomes anytime during the growing season. Don’t plant them too deep, just below the surface is fine. Location is important as well. Full sun or partial shade is recommended. After about three years of growth, you may need to break up the rhizomes and replant them so they continue to grow well. After your iris flowers start to die off, you should go ahead and cut back the foliage to about an inch about the rhizome.
Common problems with iris include “Iris borers,” a pest that will go after the rhizomes, bacterial soft rot, leaf spots, crown rot fungus, and mosaic. Iris borers are treated by removing the whole plant and cutting off any part of the rhizome that looks like it’s started to rot away. You can replant the rhizome when it’s nice and dry. Bacterial soft rot enters the rhizome where it’s been damaged or cut. To avoid problems with soft rot, always use a well-draining soil. Get rid of any rhizomes that looked diseased. If your iris leaves look spotted after your plants flower, trim off the diseased leaves in the fall. Crown rot affects the leaves where they join the rhizomes and you can treat this problem by cutting away the diseased leaves and pruning back the plant to allow the plant more access to sun and fresh air. Mosaic is a virus spread through aphids that will molt the leaves and flowers. If you control the aphids, you shouldn’t have problems with mosaic.
If you’d like to know more about the joys of planting iris, visit the American Iris Society’s Web site .
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