Re: CULT: curing rhizomes

From: Bill Shear <BILLS@hsc.edu>

Bearded irises can be held
>out of the ground for weeks or even months and survive, but they are not the
>better for it, and they will dessicate at a rapid rate at high summer.

This is true to a point--rhizomes that are completely or almost completely
dried up will be severely injured or killed, but many people, myself
included, have had the experience of quicker re-establishment and surer
first-season bloom on rhizomes that have been properly "cured."  That is,
that have been thoroughly dried even to the point of having lost half or
more of their foliage.  The stress of drying may induce rhizomes that
otherwise would not bloom to set buds.  Also, most bearded irises come from
habitats where they undergo at least a partial summer dormancy, usually due
to dryness.

We've all had the experience of "soft" rhizomes that have been pushed to
grow to huge size during the summer by supplementary water or nitrogen
collapsing with rhizome rot at the first sign of infection.

Keep 'em lean and mean, and allowing rhizomes that are to be replanted to
"cure" in dry shade is one way of doing this.

Again, the archives have plenty to say on this score.

Bill Shear
Department of Biology
Hampden-Sydney College
Hampden-Sydney VA 23943
(804)223-6172
FAX (804)223-6374
email<bills@mail.hsc.edu>

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