How to overwinter Louisiana Iris in Zone 5?

I planted the Louisiana Iris I purchased through the Hank's Iris Coop in pots filled with kitty litter. They are growing nicely in the pond, but freezing temperatures are coming. How do I overwinter? I have a greenhouse with a minimum temp of 55, I also have a root cellar that stays above freezing (around 45 to 50). Keep them in the kitty litter or pull the rhizomes? Can they take a few frosty nights if I pull them from the pond next weekend? The water won't freeze - there's 19,000 gallons, and it's still circulating.
My preference, as a lazy gardener, would be to yank the pots and put them in the root cellar.

I have the same problem, but no pond and no root cellar. I think I will leave them out -- I just have a few sitting in tubs of water -- and will see if anything makes it. Oh, I put one Black Gamecock in the ground.

Mine are planted in the ground year round but I'm in 7a and I have no idea how to care for them in your zone. Maybe Polly will see this and tell us how she holds them over winter. I think she's in zone 5a, way upstate NY.

I would definitely get them in the ground and mulch them heavily. They are actually quite hardy, supposedly to zone 4, but they are not going to winter over in water in Z5.

A root cellar might be fine. I would probably leave them in the pots they are in, if I put them in the root cellar. The greenhouse might be too warm, I'm sure they need some sort of chilling period.

Greg at Iris City Gardens would be a good one to ask. He answered all my questions about Louisianas the same day I wrote him. Unlike a couple other large vendors who never got back to me with some questions I had.

Polly - sorry about guessing wrong with your zone. Did you get a frost yet? We managed to escape it last night, happily.

I agree with your comment about large vendors not replying. I sent a two line question to one I've purchased from twice and it's more than a month later and still no reply. A simple "yes" or "no" would have been fine with me.

We actually got a freeze. Water in a bucket had ice on top.

We are warmer as I'm just a mile or so inland from Lake Ontario.

The Louisianas I purchased from Iris City Gardens last year are doing fantastic. Greg at Iris City is suce a nice person, and it really makes me want to deal with him as much as I can. I have not had the same response from the other two big beardless iris vendors. I noticed, sadly, that Iris City cut way back on their JIs this year, to focus on their Louisianas, but anyone wanting to buy Louisianas can't go wrong dealing with them.

Thanks for the info. I will get mine in the ground right away and will mulch them heavily along with my Siberians. We had our first frost about a week ago, but they appear to be okay so far. I know at least some LA's will survive up to zone 4, I just wasn't sure what the best way was. The LA's that I kept in water all summer are the happiest looking of all.

You're welcome.

None of the beardless iris, including the Japanese, like to be in water overwinter in zones 6, maybe 7 (depending on what part of the country) and lower, as when the water freezes over the crowns it cuts off the oxygen supply. Frozen soil actually holds a lot of oxygen.

Louisianas sure do like a lot of water. I thought I had lost some when we had a dry spell, and they didn't get enough water, even though I watered them heavily, in August. They were totally gone, nothing showing. But when the weather cooled down, and the rains came in September, up came the Louisianas. To my mind they need even more water than the Japanese.

I'll go in the pond (have the hypothermia blanket ready) next weekend and pull them. They can go down in the root cellar as soon as they dry out. Thanks so much for the information. Now, should anyone relish a swim with my koi, I'm more than happy to accept help. None of my family will go in the pond past August.

How absolutely lovely, and relaxing. How do you ever get any gardening done with that pond, and the view in the distance also?

Do you have any pictures of the Louisianas in bloom?

dbsmith2,

Some people up north will keep LA's in a pond year round if they own a pond heater. I don't know much about pond heaters or how much they cost, etc. but I hear they keep the water from freezing. It may also depend on the size of the pond........whether or not a pond heater would be worth buying. Do you know if your pond freezes over in the winter?

LA's need to be kept wet and never dry out. Once LA's dry out they are dead, and that is why they are even shipped usually in moist/wet paper towels.

If your pond freezes in the winter then it may be best to put the LA's in buckets of water and put them in the greenhouse for the winter. While they are there you can feed them miracid to keep them happy.

The link below may help you with water gardening pond heaters.
http://www.lilypons.com/catalog.asp?action=showgroup&id=13

I hope that helps,
~Margie

What a lovely pond and gorgeous view, db! Heavenly.

Yes, don't let them dry out. Info I have read says keep them cool and wet while not in the ground. I've even read they recommend keeping them in the refrigerator in water. (Obviously you can't do that with a full size plant). I think the temperature in the root cellar would be best, but do keep them moist.

I would NEVER leave LAs in water over the winter in zone 5b. The Chowning LAs should over winter OK in the ground for you. With mulch perhaps. That cant hurt.

Polly's info is perfect, to my way of thinking.

Go look at the parentage of your LAs.

Mine -of course- are all inside already, in pots in the window. Last year I forgot Black Gamecock who survived under our snow cover but no bloom this year.

inanda

inanda

I agree with pollyk, too.

Mine will have to survive in the ground. I am already giving away plants that just don't have room for indoors. All of this is an experiment for me. I don't have a greenhouse -- people here say they winter them in greenhouses and I am completely out of windows for plants. Lots of mulch it will be!

Most of my LA's are in a pond here, and our winters are so mild I don't have to do a thing to them. I certainly count my blessings there! :-)

I've sold LA's to people in Pa, , Ohio, NY, and even Maine. At first I discouraged them from purchasing because of their ice cold winters; but some wrote back telling me how they bring them indoors, and others say they have these pond heaters and de-icing things they use in their pond. They also tell me their pond irises & plants don't look too great during the winter months while they're in the pond, because they go dormant. ** However the plants are able to maintain the oxygen they need to survive with the air pumps, heaters and de-icers. And every late spring/summer they are blooming nicely for them.

Mulching in the ground is indeed one way to overwinter LA's ..............and quite possibly the best! ( I wouldn't know for sure since I haven't any experience growing them in very cold climates). But, I do know there are a couple of ways people over-winter LA's that grow for them in ponds up north. I suppose it comes down to ones own personal preference, time, having the right storehouse/greenhouse, or pond equipment & tools, not to mention the finances.

I hope you find what works best for you. :-) Let us know how it all turns out for you.
~Margie

Margie. I think they would overwinter in the pond if it was heated. The size of dbsmiths pond doesn't look conducive to heating it.

By the way Margie, no need to discourage anyone in this area from buying Louisianas, they do very well here. Just look at the Iris Friendship Gardens in Rochester NY's Highland Park. And of the 8 I purchased last fall, all are doing well here.

So you sell LA's? Well, that's some great info. Now we have Pirl selling JIs, Laurie with the median bearded, and you with LAs. Will we ever need to look outside DG?

I'd be interested in LA's!

I haven't yet made the decision final, pollyk, but I am leaning towards it. Any thoughts on your part towards any special plant to sell?

Well, since you asked--- I am considering selling Siberians next year, or the year after. I have over 100 varieties now, many very new, some historics.

It has also been suggested to me that I might consider selling some of the unusual beardless I have tons of, such as species, and species crosses. I have some really neat Pseudatas from Hiroshi Shimizu. They are crosses between Pseudacorus, and Ensatas, called the Eyeshadow Irises. Kinshikou is one. What's really neat about them is they are sterile, so not invasive as pseudacorus' are. Some other neat beardless like Contraband Girl (a 6 footer), and Dark Aura, with leaves that are beet red in spring. But I don't know how much of a market there might be for those. I will have to reseach it some more.

I'd love to see photos (of any Siberians or the other ones you mentioned) so if you'd like to start a thread that would be a grand treat for those of us who might be interested.

Once we're addicted to any iris it seems we're more likely to enjoy the entire family of them.

I will do so in the spring.

Many of the Siberians alreay have had pictures posted by some people who really have great collections like Boojum.

But I don't recall ever seeing a picture of a lot of the species crosses. I will make a note to myself to do that.

Thanks!

We won't mind if some cultivars get posted more than once. In the winter, we won't be choosy! I am all ready starting to miss the flowers.

I only have a few Louisiana irises but I love this one - Megan Victoria.

Oh, thanks Pirl. That is a beauty. I am hoping mine make it over the winter. I will be experimenting this year for the first time with JI's, Sibs, and LA's. Keep your fingers crossed for me and them. I hope they will still be with me in the spring.

How cool do you get during the normal winter? Not you, personally, but your garden.

It gets pretty cold here -- sometimes below zero. Many, but not all days go above freezing at least for a while. Nights are below 32 for about 3 or 4 months. It is very dry and cold.

My guess is that they'd do just fine.

Pirl, I think her problem might be the water, not the temperature. JIs, sibs and LAs should all do fine at those temperatures.

I grow all 3 here, and we have lows of -10.

But Betty also said she has little snow, and snow is a great insulator, which we have plenty of. f The winter dryness might be a problem.

I realize that my only hope is keeping these plants wet. I will plant them close to the back door so I can run out in dry spells and water them with the watering can. Obviously, I won't be able to plant an acre of these beauties.

Polly - we're not that far apart in zones but we don't get the snows you do. I don't know the average snowfall but it doesn't linger long. I love taking photos of the garden in all season but especially with snow on the ground and there was only one day last year when we had enough snow to do and enough sun to show it.

Rinsing out the coffee pot each day is good for the JI's and the second rinse is great for the others. You don't even have to throw out any remaining coffee in the pot for the JI's - just add water but be sure the coffee isn't hot!

I am in New Orleans, so my conditions are completely unlike those in the north. We don't have cellars here (if we're smart) so I am not sure exactly what the conditions are in a root cellar, but it is absolutely correct that Louisianas cannot dry out. We get an inch of snow every ten years, so I can't say much about irises in cold conditions from direct experience. I have seen pictures of Louisianas frozen in a bucket of water and then in bloom the next spring. I think they might do better in a pond in cold climates than generally realized, but possibly not if they are not established. In Rochester NY there is a large planting of Louisianas in Highland Park, called the Iris Friendship Garden. Every year Edna Claunch posts pictures from the garden by Gene Lupinetti on the Louisiana iris discussion list, and everything seems to look great in the landscape and as individual flowers. I have never heard a report on how these plantings are managed, and don't know what zone Rochester is in, but it is clear that Louisiana irises will do well pretty far north. I am posting one of Gene Lupinetti's pictures from Highland Park.

Patrick

So beautiful. Thank you for the information and the photo.

What a great thread. I just popped over to see if there was anything posted about LA irises and found it right away. Glad to see that you love your iris too pirl!

Now that I'm growing Bearded Irises, Siberians, Japanese, and Japanese Roof Irises, it's time to get into Louisiana Irises. I was just looking at the beauties at Iris City since I bought all of my original reblooming beardeds from them and I was very pleased with their prices, selection, and personal service. I told my DH that I wanted to find one that "spoke to me," but unfortunately, the one with the voice was $25! I'm not sure that I should start out as a newbie LA grower with something that pricey. It is hard to pick though since I saw so many that I liked.

Thanks for all the good info on this thread,

Linda

That is a high price for starting with them but it also would encourage you to do your best growing it. Some DG person said, on some thread, if we treated our plants as costing $200.00 each we'd be better gardeners. We'd also be OC!

I planted the few I bought in our own compost and in full sun but no other special conditions and they've done very well. One, from Dutch Gardens, has expanded VERY well:

That is so pretty Pirl. Love the soft color. Unfortunately (for my DH who helps me plant), I do plant all my plants like they are $200 plants and that means removing bad soil, lots of amendments, starting our own compost pile, etc. I don't lose very many things but once in a while it does happen. I'd hate for it to happen to a $25 LA iris though, since I have no experience with them. There were several at Iris City Gardens that were more reasonalbly priced that I could choose from. I like the fact that they tend to come in so many colors. I really liked the pink or rose colored ones. I hope they aren't like daylilies and the pink ones tend to the peach shade of pink!

I should have lots of compost come spring, and I definitely have lots of full sun, so these should work for me. Do you have to water them a lot when we don't get regular rainfall?

Linda

We have six compost bins and it's been the best thing we've done for all of our gardens.

The irrigation system gets all plants three times a week for an hour each time. I give them no other watering and no special care. I think the compost is the magic ingredient for them.

I have lost plants in spite of my best efforts.

It happens, in spite of our best efforts. I just try my best to keep it from happening. Prolifs planted out the first year don't always survive for me. I received a lily bulb in a trade from down south this spring, and I planted it and never saw it again. I moved a butterfly weed at a time when we were not getting much rain and it didn't survive- they have a deep tap root and don't like to be moved, I guess. I also lost some siberians that I got in trades last year before we moved. They were potted up as soon as I got them, in anticipation of the move, and they apparently didn't like living in pots. King of Kings was one of them. It was disappointing. I had shared some with cbrandenburg, hoping that at least one of ours would make it, but she lost them too.

I'M our irrigation system , and when I water, I try to give extra to the Siberians and the Japanese Iris(I only had one this year). It's seemed to work out since the plants have all increased this past growing season.

We just recently took a local class in composting put on by Master Gardeners in our area. We also received Earth Machines for attending the class. It was VERY informative and I think we learned a lot of things that are going to help us make compost a little faster. I used every bit that we had this year and loved it. You are so right - compost is a magic ingredient for all plants. If your LA Irises like it, that 's great to hear!

Linda

I'm in the midst of moving the blue one, shown above, and it will get even more compost than usual since I love it so much. I also love digging the La's - much more than the JI's or Sib's. They're just so quick and easy to lift, cut off the old section and replant, though I do allow the cut to air dry for a day or two.

Thanks for the tip. I'll jot that down.

cbrandenburg gave me her Cleopatra Daylily and when I planted it, I loaded the hole up with compost. It was short, very slow to increase, and small for her. It will be interesting to see if it likes a change of scenery at my house and if it does any different.