The New Iris Bed for 09

Here is my new 40 x 45 foot bed. I put in about 215 new varieties this year. This brings my total to around 600 var. so far. Can't wait to see how it looks in the coming years.

#s 4&5 on the far left row seem eager to grow.

wow... that's quite a spread... lucky duck...

would kill for that much space - or that much space in irises would kill me.... not sure which. you're lucky flowrgirl

have the space and the gophers to go with it.........

oh yea, no gophers please... I'll keep my teeny weeny backyard :)

Flowergirl
Whats the name of the iris in row 13 aisle E? I can't make the tag out

Michelle it looks awesome. You should stop by and line up my irises like that. The bed looks filled already you'll have to get rid of more grass and start a new bed next year

Haha. I have much more grass to remove and plan on it next year when I return to MI. Probably will at least double or triple it! So many irises, so little space and time.

Awesome! 215 varieties in one planting? How did you manage to do that and plant them all at once! Wow!
I guess when you really like something you sure go All out !
Too bad I dont live close, cannot wait to see what it will look like when the mature... It will be a sight to see in your neck of the woods when you drive by.
A job well done..Looks great!!!!!

is you iris garden in your north or south location? would love to come see it in bloom!

Its in the North. No gardens for me here in NC. We rent here so cant do much.

I planted the irises over a course of a month probably. I got them in as they arrived. I ordered from four sources plus have several very generous friends who shared with me! I will be sure to post pics next year when they start to bloom. Can't wait for year two and three. Those will be the good years for sure!

thanks for the compliments! I still have to get the labels on the markers but I have each row written down in order so as long as the metal markers are in I'm good till next spring.

Im using a brother p-touch label maker to do all the labels. Using the extra tough outdoor tape.

How lovely. I can't wait to see pictures next year. Some of them for sure will bloom, from the looks of them.

Do you have a color or other scheme, or are we just going to be treated to a beautiful jumble?

No color schemes or anything. Just bought what I liked and planted them! I will have to get the list put together. Still need to get all the hybridizer and intro years written on the iris list as well. I include this info on the labels when I make them.

Flower girl...nice job! We are going to have so much fun this next Spring.

I took a picture of the same area when I was talking about 'cool tools' and here it is 2 months later. I divided this area into 4 'plots' to keep each seller's Iris together. There are 146 Iris in this new plot. (I know, I should have spaced them further apart.) I'm also going to get some 'ties' to border it and help keep the grass in it's place.

Both gardens so alot of love and care. Enjoy come spring and take lots of pictures.

D

Looking good to go through the winter.

Fabulous garden, flowergirl, I envy your space and your soil. No rocks that I can see. Sigh. You will be in for years of beauty with that garden while I deal with the pain of rock removal. Beautifully lined out, I must say.

yes definately can't wait to see pictures of it blooming...I may have to put a tarp over my keyboard to protect it from drool, but it would be worth it to see them all blooming!

Thanks everyone!

Husker11- that looks great! They are a little close but you should get 3 years out of it which is great because thats about when they need division anyway. It will look great next year.

I have a wide metal rake that I used for plant spacing and row spacing. The rake was great for working the soil too. It is light weight and has one side that had about 5 inch tines. The other side had looped tines. Kind of similar to a rock rake. Not sure what its actual purpose is but it worked great for removing weed/grass clumps and for spacing.

My older beds are very overgrown. I planned on getting them transplanted this year but got a little side tracked with these other projects. Its hard because I only have weekends to work on it for about 4 months and then I'm off to the south again.

Here is a picture of my crazy original iris gardens.

Some rows I redid about 3 years ago. they looked so nice in this pic. Now they are getting messy again.

The last two pics are from the house that I grew up in. We moved there about 18 years ago. I started perennial gardens there and had some old farm irises. When I was 16 I started gardening for a woman who had lots of irises. that where I got started. She shared all her varieties with me which was about 30 or so. Been hooked since!

Love all those pictures of your gardens, everybody. I think I like them best when the irises multiply and they get "messy". Rows may be necessary for id and cultivation, but I think irises are prettier in clumps. Luckily they take care of clumping all by themselves! Rows are for corn!

me too pajaritomt! I wish I had tons more space for huge spacing so that they could clump more. Nothing like seeing a large clump of iris in full bloom.

ok I need a mop now to clean up my keyboard....you made me drool all over it! LOL

Because my irises are so overgrown in the original beds they don't bloom harldy. Out of around 400 var. only about 50 to 75 bloom each year. Gotta get them transplanted!

Trinawitch, you will need a bib too! LOL

LOL...probably on the bib cause someone else has been showing me orchids all day too....so between this forum and them I'm all twitterpated now!

When the bloom starts slowing down, it is time to divide. Not before! The clumps are so lovely!

Hi my name is Lee.
Your beds are so beautiful. I would like to know where I can get the markers that last outdoors and where is a forum for diseases of the Iris.

flowrgirl, do you plant to sell commercially? You certainly could have at least a day or two that you sell your "extras" in a yard sale, at least.
What do you mean by going "south" soon?
Your irises are beautiful. I tend to plant the ones that work for me in clumps. I have no flat land so had to make a terrace and it doesn't hold that many irises. I keep looking for rebloomers that will rebloom in this area.

Hi Lee,

Welcome to Daves Garden, and to the iris forum!

The markers made for outdoors are sold at EON, and Paw Paw amongst other places. But I've had good luck with both of them. We often have a co-op for EON markers here on Dave's Garden, and get them pretty reasonable. It's normally in the spring, though. Paw Paws price includes shipping.

EON
http://www.eonindustries.com/catalog/

Paw Paw
http://www.everlastlabel.com/

And this forum here is the right one to ask avbout iris diseases. We have a lot of knowledgeable people that will answer any questions you have.

I used the co-op with great success. The markers were much better quality than I had bought at other places before. And they are slanted for easy reading. If the writing on the slanted side (facing the light) , begins to fade and you can't read, it is a good idea to write the name on the backside, which is shaded and will last longer. That way you will always have the name to rewrite on the front.
Not sure of the best writing tool. I use china markers, which some folks call grease pencils.

Thank You

Thanks for your replies. I started a new thread for a problem I was having with a bed of Iris. I can't find it now. My fans are dropping and when I inspected them, there are little bugs on them. Is there a simple fix or solution I can make for this? Also, When I went to the extras it ask for my E-bay ID I put it in now This forum has changed my ID to it and I simply wanted Lee955. Can anyone help this lost newbie. Please Thank You in Advance for the answers and I am going to check out this site. I have added about 50 to my collection. I want names on them.

As Polly and others have already said "Welcome to Dave's Garden Lee". I wish I could help you out with your problems here on Dave's and so forth but I can't. LOL I'm not a newbie and I'm still learning new things about the website each and everyday. Due to memory problems, sometimes I learn the same thing over and over only to forget it by the next time I log on.

All I can say is looking around and click on everything and anything. Then this will get easier for you. As for myself I can't remember how to tag pages and get back to that particular post the next time I want to see it.

Most of the people here are VERY GOOD and can help with in more ways than you can ever imagine. You can also find some good deals on Irises from these folks on here. (big fat grin) Wonderful people, and wonderful knowledge, and just a good place to hang out!

Happy Gardening and Best Regards,
Marian

Lee,

I'll let someone else help you with the bugs on the irises. I'm a beardless iris grower, and don't really know all that much about bearded irises.

But, as far as your problem with your name showing up wrong, go to the top of the page, where it says 'about us', then where it says 'contact us'. You will be contacting administration through there, and they will fix it for you. They're very helpful here.

This site is one of the easier ones to get around, and you'll be a pro real quick. So stick with us.

You can also go to "my info" tab at the top of the page and scroll down. You will find "threads I have started" and voila! find your lost thread.

Thank You
Woodspirit1, How far away are you from me. The reason I ask is that we have all those lakes around because of Duke Power.. Thank You for the help. I sprayed the Iris with a solution of dish soap and water. I will know tomorrow if it has helped. Thank you again.

I can't remember where Westminster is, although I know it's in the upstate. Do you know where Salem is? It is just west of Jocassee and Keowee lakes. If you cross Hwy 11, (the scenic Cherokee trail that goes to Table Rock if you turn right) but instead go straight like you're going to Whitewater Falls (I think that's SC 146) you will go by the falls and come out in Sapphire on Hwy 64. Turn Right and that will take you to Lake Toxaway in about 3 miles.

Hey everyone. Just got back from a trip to the coast for the seafood fest. We had a nice time. Anyone ever been to the seefood fest?

My plans for my irises are for eventually selling small scale commercial and for hybridizing.

What do the little bugs look like? Do you see feeding on the leaves? You should dig up a rhizome and see if there is rot anywhere on it. Can you take a picture of it?

I bought my markers this year from eon. They are great and I did purchase them via a co op for very cheap. I think it's still open too. It's not on this site though.

I live in MI for the summers and then come back to NC for 8 months out of the year. I hate leaving my gardens for so long but luckly they get barried in snow soon so I don't have to worry for long!

There must be something very compelling about MI to have a summer home for 4 months of the year. We have a lot of summer people here in the mtns. of NC. We sometimes call them "half-backs." Most of them were originally from up north and retired to Florida. But later bought summer homes here, so they are halfway back.
I must say they have done a lot for the county, bringing culture, lots of volunteerism and of course money. But the locals were so cloistered for so long and some of them feel encroached upon. Certainly the taxes are higher. But my feelings is that if you don't want summer/retirement people then you should stop selling the land to them.