CULT: Germinating Mix

Last fall I planted 1 seed per pot (2X2X5").

I had so many to do, potting soil was too expensive.  So, I made my own.

I mixed together a gallon-sized pot of peat moss, Supersoil mulch, and
pearlite in a compost tumbler and then added another pot of each and mixed
again and continued to do so until the tumbler was full.

This made a very nice potting mix.

I got very good germination this year (75% or better on all varieties but 3)
by planting the seeds and just letting them stay outside and got watered every
3rd day or so. Sometimes the rain we had during the winter kept them wet for
weeks at a time.

The key to good germination is not only the leaching of the germination
inhibitor found in the iris seed coats, but the right amount of air and water,
along with temperature.

This simple mix seems to be all that is needed for iris seeds. Even though we
had a lot of rain, there was apparently enough air also around the seeds since
so many germinated.

Funny though, I have not watered them in 2 weeks now because they are easier
to get out of the pots when dried out, and seedlings are still germinating
this week.  So it holds its moisture well too.

Patrick Orr
Phoenix, AZ  Zone 9 - and predicted to hit 90 degrees this week
USA

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