Japanese Iris in Massachusetts

My JIs are opening!! Here is a list of what I have:
Burbot
Dirigo Blue Plate
Dirigo Red Rocket
Good Omen
Mystery White with lavender standards
Kiyamoto seedling
La Mouette
Manadzuru
Mauve Majesty
Mystery I call Mr. Blue
Nikko
Ocean Mist
Mystery orchid
Periwinkle Pinwheel
Prairie's Edge
Prairie Glory
Prairie Twilight
Purple Ensate Red Purple Ensata
Rose Queen
Rose Queen seedling
Sing the Blues
Variegated
Vermillion Sunset
White Ensata
Ensata from Eastern Russia

Here are the first blooms of the Kiyamoto seedling.

Close-up.

Prairie Twilight. Last year this one was much taller. Same with my siberians. I think the late cold weather in spring stunted them.

Here is my new one that I got in a drawing this past weekend at an AIS gathering in VT. It is tall and oh so species!-an ensata from eastern Russia. I love it.

Vermillion Sunset.

Edited to say it's not Vermillion Sunset! It's Dirigo Red Rocket! Sorry.

This message was edited Jun 29, 2007 1:22 AM

Here's one I traded with a friend. Had to have it!!! I planted it last August and it was the first to bloom! I was shocked!

That's it for now. I'll post as they open. :))

Beautiful, I especially love the Vermillion Sunset. You have some very nice pictures of some very pretty flowers.
I have never raised J Iris I am going to get some this fall and I am so looking forward to next year.
I will be continueing to watch your thread--lol-!!!!
Sandra

Hi Sandra! You will love these! They may not bloom the first year though.

I promise to talk to them a lot and give them lots of manure, what else should I do to help them along?
Sandra

I am heading your way this weekend....I don't think I have time to visit, but oh so very tempted. Lovely From Russia with love! And the Kiyamoto seedlings ( I don't understand how they are seedlings) are so amazing. Patti

I absolutely love that Russian one.

Well Patti, if something falls through, I'd love to have you see the JIs!! FYI, it's a seedling till introduced. Therefore, I'm not allowed to trade them in case they get introduced in the future. I had to beg big time for these seedlings and promise my first born, etc. Actually the rose queen seedling took a few years of begging!

Boojum, I now remember the story and it make sense. So much to learn. I will be happy if the group that I am attempting to grow produces bloom this year. I planted them in 4 different locations to see what worked best for them, so I will monitor their success before I think about adding more. But certainly it would be the 3falls or species types. I still have lots of room, but not so much energy to keep expanding. So she says, today. ha. Patti

Yeh, I told DBF that you have all different JIs from me and maybe we could trade and I started thinking about where I would put more and got exhausted thinking about it. I seem to be able to snaek them in as my finicky roses die!! Lost 4 roses this year and so far I'm not upset at all. HA!

Boojum, which roses did you loose? I thought you had to move Japanese because they lost vigor after a few years in the same location and that you could not replant area with other iris either. Here is one such warning from http://www.irisgarden.org/irisculture2.html But maybe you get enough snow cover to leach out the toxic excretion that causes the problem. Patti

boojum - I'm with you in trying to think up new spots for them. Looks like other plants will have to be relocated to make room.

Unless I'm absolutely forced to move the JI's and that would only be for reasons of declining vigor, I won't. I'm a lot older than you "young'uns" and the thought of it is a nightmare to me.

I hate to be the bearer or bad news :(
I had 2 different types of Japanese Iris planted together in my front bed.
The bloomed beautifully for 2 years. Last year I dug them up to share with another DG member and re-planted them back into the same spot.
This year they did not come up and showed no life at all.
I dug the roots and indeed they both had some sort of disease thing going on. Broken hearted and miss them very much :(

Kim

Kim - what month did you divide them? So sorry about your loss - I'd be crushed. What colors were they or what names. Maybe some of us have extras.

I divided them last fall. If I remember right it was probably Sept. or Oct.
I'm at work right now and don't have my pictures available but they weren't named, just loved :)
One was all dark purple and the other was purple/yellow/white splashed.
Part of me wonders if they died a natural death from the toxic substance they emit or whether or not it had something to do with digging them up to divide?

Kim

Kim, From my reading, they don't up and die, but slowly lose their vigor, like me and become less productive in bloom. Patti

Funny Patti!

That's what I read too, they gradually decline.

Kim, it might just have been too late to divide. I'm Z6, and I don't divide JIs after the first part of September, or so. As Pirl said, post a pic. I might can share too.

Yes, funny, Patti! Me, too.

What zone are you in? I did over that whole JI garden in very late September but it's probably a bit cooler for you in September and October - my favorite Maine months.

I can send some purple with yellow in late August. By "splashed" do you mean a plicata?

Please remind me!

OOOOOH I would just LOVE to have another Japanese Iris :)
I am in zone 5 and yes we are definately colder than you in any given month.
I will post a picture of my JI that died so that you can see what I mean but I LOVE all JI with multiple colors/splashes/streaks etc. :)
I can't thank you enough!

Kim

They grow so well that it's a pleasure to share.

Your JIs are magnificent and though I am in zone 5, I won't be trying them myself. Our climate is dry and I don't have a pond or water feature, so I am really enjoying and all of your pictures.

Kim, I've only ever planted JIs in spring. Maybe that was the problem.

It probably was Boojum :(
I don't really know alot about them but will do some more research so that I can make them happy as I truly enjoyed taking pictures of them while in bloom.

Well, this morning I was going to post a picture of my JI that died but as I was looking through all the pictures on my hard drive I remembered that hubby asked if I needed ALL the pictures I had and at first I said yes but then he said I needed to make some room so I decided to delete all the pictures of things that had died. Totally forgot but I deleted all my JI pictures :(

Just realized, I need to delete all my orchid pictures now too *lol* as I have learned that I can't grow Orchids either :(

Kim

Oh Kim! I can't believe you "can't grow orchids". Where did you get your orchids? If you get them from a box store they could be inferior plants. And I killed a bunch till I learned about them. Now I have 150! I still kill a few but the ones that like it here are thriving. They do take daily attention though!

I sent all 5 of them and 4 pots to a lady for postage as I was so tired of watching them die :( Broke my heart. Had both Phals and Dens and it didn't seem to matter. It was OK though as I needed the space and found they weren't one of my favorite foliages. I have really reached a point where space is becoming an issue and have decided not to "collect" too many more species *lol* As is it, I have a HUGE Pink Princess outside that I don't know where to put this fall *lol*

Kim

Same story with me and orchids, Kim. The lone survivor is outside for the summer.

Pril, even though I have heard they are easy, I have not had that experience *lol* Glad to know I'm not alone :)

Kim

One year I had quite a few doing well but one by one they died the sad orchid death. I want to reclaim my own porch for sitting and reading in the winter. There's enough room for 40 or 50 plants and I am willing to share but the orchids took over the whole coffee table.

Well, I guess I'm in the thick of it here. I'm contemplating a GH. And I'm getting rid of other houseplants not part of my many "collections" for space! We're all choosing what we love and don't love and isn't that cool!?

.........and then, in a few years, we can switch back. It's great fun! I wouldn't have it any other way.

Right!

Beni Tsubaki on Long Island, NY (per request of Boojum)

Pirl, Nice request from Boojum, as this is a great combo for us to see. So this Ben Tsubaki is in part shade or shade? Which astilbe is this? I grow lots of the whites and some reds. I have a pink that was mismarked, but not so nice as this one. Do tell. I am becoming more girly, adding pinks like a drunken barbie doll. Patti

Being a drunken old Barbie doll isn't the worst thing!

Beni (my nickname for him) is in a touch of morning sun but more afternoon sun and has a northwest exposure. The astilbe is one of our ? plants. I've divided so many I don't know who it is.

I have that astilbe blooming now, too, and it's a NOID here. Sorry no help!

Patti, I'm in pinkland too. Doe that make me a Barbie drunk, too?