planting irises cuttings in pots

Hi,

I got 16 small irises cuttings from Bleek's coop. I didn't want to miss the chance to get some great little babies but I now have a problem.

I am still planning my borders. The soil is horrible, pure red clay so i will need to build some raised beds for my borders.

Is it OK to keep the cuttings in pots until the borders are ready?

I have seen photos of flowering irises in clay pots. Do they do well?

Thank you:o)

don't understand cuttings ?
IRIS have rhizomes , are you sure there iris ?, maybe you have a baby rhizome
this is a picture of iris rhizome and on side are baby iris rhizomes.
if you have baby ones you can plant in raised beds or pots and keep on south side of house till spring

Tassy, I am sorry.:o(

They are rhizomes.

Thank you for your help.

that ok we all do that,
till we grow for long time

And then we grow for a long time, get older. and still do it. And I think the older I get the more I do it. I can't remember what it is, but I do it, LOL.

Here's some basic info, Spider07, from the American Iris Society. If you'd like to read up on the correct terminology a bit.

http://www.irises.org/growing.htm

spider, I offered this quick fix solution on another thread. It's worked for me, and I'm in zone7 with unbaked brick for soil (hard dense red clay)

whenever I cant get irises planted fast enough, I go by my local Lowes or Home Depot or even Ace hardware and grab the cheapest bag of topsoil I can find. pour it out on top of the clay, at least six inches high, and slightly wider than your rhizzome's roots. I ususally have many to plant, and i pour out in a row and then tuck them in nose to heel (rhizomes are sometimes referred to feet) in the loose soil. Then I run a soaker hose on the row and keep them dampened every day for 3 weeks. It keeps them happy until I'm ready to plant, and if I run out of time - which I do every year - they can stay there until spring. I had an area of old gravel driveway I used, just scooted what was left of the gravel out of the way. A $1.40 bag can cover 4-20 irises, depending on their size. cheaper and easier than washing pots, and unlike pots, in which iris can die, they always stay alive.

This year, due to health problems, this may well be all I can do.

we Call it hilling them in
and a lot do so good they stay there !
cause im getting slower and if it working let them stay

yep tazzy. we call it heeling them in - maybe that's because we're Tarheels LOL

thank you very much Tazzy, Polick and Bonjon,

lots of very good info here!

I am going to get a bag of soil and plant them like Bonjon suggested.


I am only worried about the squirrels digging everything up. They have been at it a lot and most of my pots have been dug up. i just hope they will leave the irises in the makeshift border alone.

Do I need a sunny place for this border? Can they survive in partial shade?

thank you:o)

Usually should have a 1/2 day of sun. In your climate some shade might be all right. Ask people who grow the plants further south than our 6a zone.

put hot sauce or cayenne pepper on top of the soil . it will burn the squirrls hands when they dig they dont like it . i have a giant pecan tree in the front and a huge acorn tree (what ever makes acorns lol) in the back and the squirrls are as big as cats here . they always dig my newly planted iris then just toss them aside . like they watch me from the trees and see if i planted any goodies .

edit : they stop when i put hot sauce down . you have to reapply after it rains until they are established. i use my dhs louisiana hot sauce lol

This message was edited Sep 21, 2008 3:44 PM

thank you for the tip!:o)

yup - you should know that I know of nothing that will eat irises except borers, for which I'm too far south in general.

Both squirrels and deer are prone to pulling up my newly planted iris plants. They immediately spit them out and leave them on the ground. after each squirrel tries it once, they don't try again. I've watched the deer - it's like one tries, and spits, and the rest walk away. I'm told they taste nasty. the beauty of my system, I've never had squirrels mess with more than one or two - and they keep coming to the same one or two, don't know why. but my irises survived as long as I can get them back in the hole before they turn crisp. And even then, most survive but are set back a year of bloom.

I can tell you that here in Central Washington, up in the Cascades, SLUGS will eat your irises, but only after they have broken the ground in the spring. They will eat every bud there is and some of the new tender fans also. I have to surround my iris beds with copper tape to keep them safe from the slugs.

really? I've lived not 15 miles from here and had slugs all over the place. But here I almost never see slugs - no clue why, except I have a gazillion frogs.

what eats slugs any way? i have alot . i go into a panic when i go out side to take the dogs out at night and realize that in my sleepy state forgot to put my shoes on . youd think there were landmines in my yard . i stepped on one barefoot once and screamed and ran ,well it was a combo off running and hopping, with my pug in my arms .

Some birds will eat slugs. Frogs and opossums eat them as well.

Iris 28, LOL!!!

go ahead and laugh ... ;) ive never been the type to be traumatized . i was by that . i was gonna go to the car which is right by the door. i opened the door and turned right around and was like oh no i can not live through that again .. my heart was pounding and everything at that flash back .i was like whats wrong with me im not sacred of anything i guess i am now. is there a slug phobia . i think i have that now

Squirrels steal my newly planted iris big time. Or at least they did. Now I put wire mesh over them till they are rooted properly and !@#$ bushy tailed RATS can't pull them out.

The wood planks cover the soil to keep out the local cats until I plant rhe boxes and cover with yet more wire.

This message was edited Sep 22, 2008 9:18 PM

polyk,
look at all the pretty pictures while listing to this makes you feel like doing the Iris Bop

http://www.snjmall.com/chico/

I usually listen to the Elvis channel on satellite when I'm reading DG, so this will be something different. Thanks Taz!

Tazzy, my husband loves the jukebox, too. Thanks.

^_^

GUESS WHAT. My H & I own a Sncak shop and 38 Below Ice Cream shop right out of the 60's and we have a Juke Box in there that was in our favorite drive Inn when wwe grew up here,. It belongs to a friend and he has over 4ooo 45's we change out from that period,. You would love it. We do.

Boy would i
My 49 year old daughter has about 500 of mine old 45's

I would too. How cool is that!

I still have some old 45s. Not nearly that many though.

If I ever get to Montana, you know where I'll be headed. Oldies and ice cream, yup.

hold onto em polly - in good condition those are worth gold these days. I"m going to stop buy next time I"m in Montana, that's for sure. where is Cut Bank? been to Boseman and White Fish.

I would love to have you stop by. We are in the northern part of the stae about 30 miles from Canada and 35 miles E. of Glacier Natl, Park. Whitefish is on the west side of the Mtns. Bozeman in in the S. of the state. You all need to go to Glacier Park don't you! We also have Huckleberry had and soft Icecreams that are a Montana Specific berry. We would load the Juke for you. Oh I sing too.!!!!!!!!!!!

Tazzy-I just went to the link and it's great. There's a Moon Out Tonight just made me go look to see if there was and there is. How coll is that.

sounds great - my family went to Glacier National without me (I'd gone off to college) and I loved their vacation photos but felt left out. DH is from Rapid City. maybe next year when his mom demands another visit from him, we can go - last kid home would love it! When's best time to visit Glacier NP?

Bonjon, best time is after mid june as can be cold and rainy till then, Fall is also an awesome time but a lot of the park closes stores etc. Mid june to Sept. 15 is the best. You have to go over Going to the Sun hgwy. You will feel close to heaven there.

have heard about that road! kinda like the continental divide road in Estes Park, right?

Bonjon. It is. I have lived here all my life and am always in awe of it. Up at the top there are always Mountain goats wantering and sometimes deer and a bear or 2. When your in the Mtns at night the stars are so bright as no city lights or smog to interfere.

I remember it was like that at Whitefish. And in Idaho Falls when I lived there. wish I could have all the family here, and all the clean air and stars of there. but I adore trees. grew up where it was heavily forested.

Spider, I have put a few of mine in pots and they seem to be ok.
Love the 'going to the sun' highway. It had just snowed before July 4th, 2000 when we went through there.

this year on July 4th we went over Going to the Sun and there were 8' drifts of snow yet. Don't think my iris would have bloomed up there.LOL