Irises: My irises have started, 1 by Mainer

Mainer wrote:
Thanks Linda. Not been able to post for a few days.

Today am sunburned for we had grooming class for the show coming up Saturday. Grooming class was held in Ted and John White's Garden. It was ninety degrees in the shade which is too early for us Mainers to be getting this sort of weather. Frying the blooms and making them bloom all at once in my garden after the rain tattered lots of the blooms.

One thing judges look for most important in a show is how the bloom stalk fits the description of the type of iris. If it has the proper height or leaning instead of standing straight. One terminal perfect bloom is not tossed out when other blooms like five on a stalk are not perfect. Such things like white spots from rain and natural tears and if it looks like you picked a bloom off without smoothing the area around the bloom or if you wipe off your fingerprints on the stalk or do not wipe them off can cost you points if you are going for Queen of Show. Oh, no cheating like placing needles in the plants to straighten them but you may make your stalk look taller if it is too short for correct height by wedging in the container you place the stalk in. No bruising must show on the stalks. Higher points for leave natural unless there is prints on the stalk. Then wipe of the prints gets you more points.

I am not ready for that type of competing and will be content if I enter one not perfect iris just to learn how to fill out the stuff you need to and the process of entering. Not thinking I will do that this year.

I got shown how to pollinate german irises and a neat pair of tweezers and tags and a couple of anther holders to start me off.

Grooming was interesting. Poking the standards with a pen to make them touch edge to edge makes them look much neater and easier for the judges to look into the bloom itself. Learned about what the judges expect in a bloom and what not to do.

I do not think my bloom time is matching show time, I only have one rhizome of most of my stuff so choosing a perfect stalk and perfect height is out of the question this year. I will go take pics, buy some irises and not worry about entering. It was fun hearing the stories from the now judges who were newbies once or hearing hybridizers saying their first intros are now historics.

I think one daylily crossed sucessfully is great, they have fields of both iris and day lily seedlings which just amaze me. Getting iris seed this year from a few will be great, germinating them will be another matter.

Labeling was discussed like I was surprised in pollinating an iris that the hybridizers do not just brush the anthers on the female part. They shove the whole anther inside so when the temp is right it will pollinate before the bees get a chance. Big thing is getting there before the bees do.