Re: HYB:Crosses:Natural selection

You're totally right Betty,

If you don't cross them, you can't plant them > !
This line of yours has been the best incentive for my starting crosses on a BIG scale. And i must thank you for that. Even if i'll be facing a mob of at least 10 000sdlgs in June! But now i can also thank you (and Monty Byers) for lifting my already building up guilt, knowing i won't replant ALL the sdlgs that will come from the 500 pods that are now waiting in their pots. It will be with your blessings that i might let most of them wait more than planned!
If i manage to buy that 2 acres field close to the village, then i'll have room alright, but the guy wants 83 000$ ( yes you heard !)and i had set my maximum on 60 which is already 10 times more than what it costs in my former village in Normandy-France...
If not, the selection will have to be drastic, if i replant too much then there will be absolutely no room for the following year!
You're also very right that even if you get carried away during the pollinaisation, there comes a time selection must happen. And it's much easier to select at the time of replanting, let's try to sort out why:
1-They all had a chance. The ones that didn't germinate, too bad for them...That is the easiest selection. 2-because of simple exhaustion. It's already hard work to replant, not to mention the preparation of the soil, but then you must keep track of the different sdlgs on a map of the beds, always fearing any mixup that would ruin a whole year of work... 3-because we have time over winter to go through the list of crosses made, some still keep seeming interesting, but some, gradually loose interest. Or you realise that some are redondant, or won't REALLY bring anything more than what you already have! These pots will finally be easily discarded. 4- And this is new...it might become a new trend...to let them spend a year crowded in their tiny pots, like a familly of bonzai! 


----------------------------------------------
Loic TASQUIER     zone 6 - Nederland
Email : tasquierloic@cs.com
-- Original Message ----- From: <Autmirislvr@aol.com> 
To: <iris@hort.net>
Sent: Saturday, December 02, 2006 4:30 PM
Subject: [iris]HYB:Crosses:Natural selection




My signature . . . "If you don't cross them, you can't plant them!"

This is basically true.

.
3) Transplant the seedlings. This is where my personal selectivity usually kicks in. This is where I have to make choices. If I don't have room for all seedlings? Then I plant two types of seedlings. A) the ones I think have 
the best chance for rebloom,  and B) my personal favorites.

I have a hard time throwing plants away, so the left over seedlings sit in
their pots until I finally plant them or they all die.  Iris seedlings are
really quite sturdy. Sometimes these irises in the pots bloom. Like the lovely white from the Edith Wolford+ seedlings . . . so then they were planted out. 
One bloomed this past July.  Then the white bearded red  which I still
haven't planted out.

Watered well with Miracle Grow, I've had pods mature good seed in 2 inches
of potting soil in the bottom of a mum pot! Foundation for some of my best 
rebloom seedlings.

Or the pots sprout more seed.  This happened with 1708.  (only 4  sprouted
total) I didn't have room prepared in the garden so I transplanted three of these into large pots. One was the gorgeous pink over lavender with red beards 
that I posted this spring.  Seed from it are in a pot this  fall.

Think of the opportunities and beautiful sights I'd missed, if I didn't
'make that cross?'


________________________________________________________
Betty W.  in South-central KY Zone 6 ---If you don't cross them, you can't
plant them!
Bridge In Time Iris Garden@website:
Where the seeds are in the pots once  again!
_www.thegardensite.com/irises/bridgeintime/_
(http://www.thegardensite.com/irises/bridgeintime/)
_Reblooming Iris - Home Page_ (http://www.rebloomingiris.com/)
_iris-photos archives_ (http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-photos/)
_iris-talk archives_ (http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-talk/)
_AIS: American Iris Society website_ (http://www.irises.org/)

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