I am doing some dividing and moving of plants and need help with my iris. I have quite a few and they really need to be divided. I have no clue. Here is a picture of one that I dug up and it is all connected! Where and how do I cut? And which part gets replanted? Help!
Sherry
I am going to dig one later today, and I'll take pictures as I go, but this might help you in the mean time.
The easiest way for you to start would be to turn the rhizome upside down. Cut off and discard any material without live roots. (Do not compost the discards they carry insect eggs into the next bloom cycle).
It doesn't look like you'll have to trim the foliage as it doesn't look taller than 5 inches. Prepare the remaining rhizomes by washing them thoroughly with water using a jet spray and scrub brush.
Next prepare bleach bath. 1 cup bleach to 9 cups water. I use an old dishpan or fishbox. Let rhizomes soak for 10 to 20 minutes. Rinse well and leave in open, airy sunny location until dry.
Check your used bleach water, if it is clean, you can save it and use again. I sometimes find borers in the water, so don't be alarmed if you do. You can now inspect your dry rhizomes and check to see if they need further trimming. I use an old steak knife. Discard any rhizomes that have soft spots or smell bad. Replant or trade.
Here's some pictures as I dug and prepped Dawn of Change for trading. madebydave this one's for you. No more bearded iris trades until next year.
#1 sprayer set to jet spray, don't forget your scrub brush
#2 all clean of dirt
#3 bleach soak 10 to 20 minutes
#4 & #5 rinse both sides
#6 dry
#7 What you'll have to look forward to next year
If you are mailing, pack in dry newspaper or paper bags, write name on foliage with permanent marker, send picture of bloom if possible.
Hope this helps!
Watch the splash on bleach water. I now have a permament pair of garden pants with bleach splash.
Nice job mittsy! irisMA, I am glad that I am not the only one with bleach spots on a pair of shorts and pants.
mittsy,
Thank you so much! The pictures were so helpful! I didn't know you needed so little of the rhizome. So what I got from your post, was in the picture I posted of the huge connected rhizome, most of that will be thrown away. Is that correct or am I totally wrong?
That's correct. But don't compost it unless everything gets the bleach bath. I divided some Siberians yesterday and found a fat borer down in the base of the plant. I've never given them the bleach treatment, but going to do a test batch today.
