new at irises.

So this is my first year planting irises. Mine came up a little and have not done anything else sincce. I wonder if I planted worng

What kind of irises did you plant? I grow the bearded ones. If you have those, the tops of the rhizomes need to be exposed. Schreiner's website has some really good planting instructions (with photos):

http://www.schreinersgardens.com/iris_culture.shtml

Hi Steph,

First, welcome to the Iris world. As someone
mentioned last night, you'll quickly find yourself
planting more and more of them. The Iris Virus.

I'm certainly no expert, but I agree with Cathy, you may
have unknowingly planted them too deep for your area.
Are the rhizomes showing at all?

Are the plants large or small?

:-) KM

Irisis and roses, my goodness. I wish I didnt have any lawn I would plant so so so many.

Wuvie: I like that " The Iris Virus" ...now I know what I have, thanks for the diagnosis !

I scraped away the extra dirt around the base. I did plant them to deep. Why do you have to plant them so shallow?

Because bearded irises don't grow from bulbs which would typically be planted deeply. They grow from rhizomes which are actually modified stems and require shallow planting, leaving the tops of the rhizomes exposed to the sun or just barely below the soil surface.

It's really not a good idea to just scrape away the extra dirt from the tops of the rhizomes because now you have created a depression right on top of the rhizomes that may collect and hold water, thereby rotting your rhizomes. It would be better to lift the entire plant, then add some soil to the bottom of the hole to raise it, and replace the plant. That will bring the rhizomes up to the soil surface without causes any water-holding depression on top of the clump.

Laurie

At this time of the year in San Diego Calif, unless you planted them very deep, you could just scape away the dirt about 6" all the way around the iris. I know you have not had that much rain there and there is not that much predicted for you.

Lifting, this late you might lose the bloom for this year.

Bearded Iris need to have part of the rhizome exposed to the elements in order to grow well.

Enjoy the wonderful world of iris. You will find you got the virvus and the lawn will start downsizing and then your husband will wonder where the lawn is going...LOL

D

lol yup the lawn is losing the battle of roses and iris. You know I am suprised that I dont see many irises in my area. Some people I talk to think them as being invasive.

You are kidding.
In the garden I never had to divide except about 3-4 years.

D

My Louisiana irises are looking a little bedraggled. When, if ever, should I cut them back? I didn't last year (their 2nd), and I don't think they bloomed as well, despite all the rain. I think I bought Louisiana bearded irises.

There is no such thing as Louisiana bearded irises. Louisianas are one of the beardless types of irises. So, you either purchased Louisiana irises or you purchased bearded irises.

If you purchased LAs, they require lots and lots and lots of water. Many folks grow them in bogs or buried kiddie wading pools.

Laurie

"never had to divide except about 3-4 years"?

Oh no, what am I doing wrong? It seems like I have to divide every 2-3 years.

You're not doing anything wrong. Sounds like you're doing everything right, unless, of course, you're planting your irises too closely together. I plant my miniature and standard dwarfs at 1' spacing and my taller medians and talls at 18-24".

Some cultivars are much more vigorous increasers than others. It's possible that you may just be growing very vigorous irises.

Laurie

I have some "Dawn of Change" that are almost invasive. HUGE, tall and multiply rapidly.
Darn things have the vigor of historics.