Re: CULT: mulch (was TB: Mariah)

Bill - thanks for the details on your mulch experiments & more from the
Morrison research.

Where was the Morrison report published?  Is it available on the web
somewhere?  How can I get a copy?

In the decades I've been growing irises, I've noticed that some
cultivars tend to bury their rhizomes deeper than planted while some do
the opposite.  Presumably, the 'divers' wouldn't mind mulch.

Observation here is that some irises tolerate/thrive with mulch, whether
from wet, matted, wind blown tree leaves, thick weeds, or intentional
mulch, while others are damaged by it.  One of my hybridizing goals is
to have seedlings that thrive with mulch.

No data to support it yet, but I suspect cooler summer soil temperatures
& more uniform moisture under mulch might enhance chances for rebloom in
those rebloomers that bloom more often than just spring and fall.

Does the Morrison article mention insect problems with mulch?  One of
the things I noticed during the drought this summer was that crickets
(which can gnaw on rhizomes & contribute to rot getting started) were
attracted to hay mulch around my seedlings.  I wouldn't recommend hay
mulch, but it was handy at the time I was lining out seedlings in the
corn rows.

--
Linda Mann east Tennessee USA zone 7/8

American Iris Society web site <http://www.irises.org>
iris-talk/Mallorn archives: <http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-talk/>
iris-photos/Mallorn archives: <http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-photos/>

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