A Bumper Crop!

I just got finished dividing, cleaning, clipping, and labeling my first
year's crop of bearded iris rhizomes.  Most of my irises produced at least 3
increases or more with several little "rhizomelets" (hey, if bulbs can make
bulblets, why not rhizomelets!).  I even had to break out "the big kitchen
knife" to separate some of the increases.  However, I only had one increase
that was in the same size range as the original ones that I got from
Schreiner's.

My kitchen floor is currently strewn with little piles of iris rhizomes and
my 3 year old daughter is segregating them into families - Mommies, Daddies,
and babies.  I've never before been this proud of plants from my garden, not
even vegetables.  I guess this means I definitely have the iris virus.

Thanks Tom for the information on the chromosomes and pedigrees.  I was
planning on ordering the _World of Irises_ from AIS soon, anyway. I visited
a local grower of irises this weekend and he showed me what a 10 year
introduction/registration list looked like.

I would recommend that other iris newbies, like myself, take the time to
seek out experienced local iris growers.  Local growers have a good feel for
what grows and performs well in your climate and are ever so generous,
especially after they have already filled their current year's mail orders
and are faced with the task of replanting everything they just dug.  I
picked up some fairly choice TB's this weekend for approximately $2.00 a
clump!---about 40 plants total including extras, all for $18.00.  I paid
with a twenty dollar bill and refused to let him go in the house to get the
2 bucks change.  I felt like I was robbing him already!  He also answered my
iris questions and let me peruse the various catalogs from which he ordered
for about two hours after digging my order.  Iris people are the greatest!

-Donald Mosser, a proud, new father of many "baby" irises.


Donald Mosser
dmosser@southconn.com
North Augusta, SC
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