Japanese Iris

Diomedes
Sterling Innerst 1991

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Earth and Fire

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Love them all, Dee! Thanks for sharing! :0)

Laura

You are welcome they are really just starting to bloom.

I enjoy going out and trying to capture a nice picture and see which ones I really like and which ones I do not. 90% are keepers and just want more.

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irisloverdee-Love your agrippinella, will have to add that one to my wanted list.

flowerfrenzy-I am interested in a co-op from Aitkens. I need to order more sibs. Have lots of la's and jap's but just a few sibs.

I went home at lunch and more Japanese blooming everywhere. Started to call back to work and tell them want be back today I'm home taking pictures.

Shirley

Shirley

You sound as bad as I do..

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mrsspeed~keep your eyes open. The co-op should be sometime this month. I'm just waiting on the list of available varieties from the Aitkens.

Here is another one of mine that opened today. RUBY STAR is absolutely gorgeous!!! I love the depth of color.

Ruby Star and Agrippinella are must have's for me now! LOL

I have one new one blooming today. Thank you for this one Dee!

First Encounter

Beautiful iris. In Az they are over now. Do the janpanese iris bloom later or at the same time,
Thanks
linda

They are later than beardeds and siberians here.

Here's another that bloomed for me today. This is BEWITCHING TWILIGHT.

I like Laura

Here is one you like Picotee Princess

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Yes, I love that one!

More blooming today.

Chidori

Enchanted Melody

Freckled Geisha

Frosted Pyramid

Lace Ruff

I like Enchanted Melody very well. Thank you for sharing

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Shirley.. I would love to hear more about how you have your JI's planted. In beds etc...how do you keep them wet enough during the summer and dry enough during the winter ?

thanks
charlotte

I just realized last year I had some JI's growing amongst my SIB's. Not quite sure where they came from, but they are obviously happy here! So now I have another area to explore...
By the way, I was reading about the culture of JI's and there was mention of fertilizing with urea. And I thought, hmmm...I can get a lot of that quite easily! Anyone else hear of that?

After I have transplanted the entire field, I mound the cheap steer manure about 3-4" thick on top of the JI and the Sib and it helps with weed control, big and better growth and more blooms.

Chad Harris is the one that told me to do this years ago and the cheapest steer manure I can get is 50# for .97 at Home Depot and I was careful to check with Chad if this is what he meant to make sure and it was

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Asian Festival

Garnet Royalty

Charlotte-I mulch them in winter. They do not have to stay that wet really. If it gets really dry I do water them with the garden hose. I have sun and shade and they seem to do well in both. Of course they are not in complete shade all day.

Irisloverdee-good tip on the manure. Will try that.

Shirley

Kings Robe

McKenzie Sunset

Sandsation

Here are a couple more of mine that are in bloom today.

FLASHING KOI

RASPBERRY GLOW

I am displeased with where mine are... I think I may move them this fall. Try to dig a whole mound of dirt (get ready backache).

Thoroughly loved the JI pics! I have had one little clump of them for two years with the first blooms coming this year! Stunning. I must have more! JI's are so beautiful.

I always thought I couldn't grow them because my garden space wasn't wet enough, but the Ensata Gardens culture sheet mentions that they give the same treatment to JI's that they give their siberians. That surprised me. But it worked for my JI clump.

I think that people are afraid to grow JIs because their culture information makes it sound like they're a ton of extra work. I give mine just a bit more TLC than my other irises and they increase and bloom wonderfully! I don't find them to be very much work at all. I grow many other things in my garden that are a lot more work!

I went out today and purchased a couple more of them on sale at the nursery.

Now, ff, what kind of extra TLC do you give them? I just treated my little clump like siberians and they bloomed away last week. If I give them TLC will they be even better?!!

I give them Miracid and aged steer manure. I do the manure twice a year and give them Miracid about 4x a year. I find that makes them grow taller and the blooms are (on average) about 2" bigger all around.

Oooh! Thanks for the tip. I will get some steer manure and Miracid. t.

I forgot to mention that I also add alfalfa pellets (the horse type, not the rabbit type~that has extra salt) into the soil. I do it with most of my plants and they all love it!