As a result of spring was late in lots of locations this yr, it’s seemingly that almost all Iris bloom can be crowded into June, besides within the South. This would be the case for all sorts of Iris besides the dwarfs and early intermediate bearded Irises whose blossoms may have handed.
Early this month, Iris fanciers could benefit from the attractive blossoms of recent tall bearded varieties in addition to the Siberians which have been vastly improved in recent times. These are adopted shortly by the stunning swish flowers of such beardless varieties because the Southern species hybrids and spurias. On the finish of June the imposing Japanese Iris will command consideration all over the place.
Transferring Irises now
Happily, not a lot cultural exercise is important throughout flowering time. This offers the Iris gardener a possibility to benefit from the outcomes of his labors and in addition an opportunity to go to different individuals’s gardens and business plantings. There, one can word the newest novelties and choose varieties to be added to the house assortment. If desired, crops might be dug at a nursery whereas in bloom, taken house, and planted instantly. This may be accomplished with none considerable hurt to the plant, although in fact, it’s higher to attend till the rhizomes have matured in July earlier than lifting and planting.
Lower flower stalks shut
As quickly as Irises have completed blooming, it doesn’t matter what sort, lower off the flower stalk near the ground-flush with the highest of the rhizome within the case of bearded Iris. This permits extra air and light-weight to penetrate into the clump and helps to take care of it in a wholesome situation. Likewise, when chopping Iris for house ornament, lower the stalk off near the bottom as a substitute of snipping off sections of the stem close to the highest. Stems can at all times be shortened earlier than being organized.
In June, particularly throughout sizzling moist spells, watch intently for evidences of rhizome rot, the foul smelling bacterial decay of the basis, described final month. Function on the rhizome, drastically if needed, to take away all decayed parts after which smear the wound with sulfur or copper carbonate. If the rot has affected a number of rhizomes in a gaggle, elevate your entire clump and replant solely the sound rhizomes after letting them dry completely out of the bottom for a number of days.
Any Iris borers that escaped consideration in Could will by now have penetrated the rhizome and have grow to be sizable worms. There isn’t a alternative however to dig up and discard rhizomes thus attacked, in any other case the damage attributable to the borer could be very prone to convey on rot and trigger worse havoc in a while.
Thrips and leaf spot
An occasional dusting of Iris crops with sulfur-rotenone in June will assist forestall leaf spot on bearded Iris and preserve in examine any Iris thrips which can be harbored on the leaves of Japanese Iris. On the latter, thrips if prevalent could stop the blossoms from opening in a traditional style and the in any other case attractive blooms could also be a lot deformed because of the insidious actions of this tiny insect, a lot the identical as with Gladiolus.
With all these admonitions I don’t want to create the impression that Irises are often plagued with illnesses and bugs when in truth they’re remarkably freed from them. Nevertheless, because the previous saying goes, “An oz of prevention is price a pound of treatment.”
By F. W. Cassebeer
