Re: Iris handling
- To: i*@rt66.com
- Subject: Re: Iris handling
- From: D* S* <d*@roanoke.infi.net>
- Date: Tue, 09 Jul 1996 15:01:28 -0400
- References: <31E28BE7.5DE4@ici.net>
Alan Thadeu wrote:
>
> Dennis Stoneburner wrote:
> >
> > Ted White wrote:
> >
> > ....contained enormous quantities of 24-0-0 fertilizer.I'm a relatively new "serious" Iris gardener. Why do fertilizer levels
> have an affect tubers rotting etc.
> Thanks,
> Alan on lovely Cape Cod, MA
Hello Alan,
Nitrogen is the biggest problem. If you use 5-10-10 or 5-10-5 or even
10-10-10 in small amounts, you should not have any problems. Nitrogen
is to iris like salt is to humans, causes increased water retention and
size increase, which for iris will cause ROT, that awful smelly
fragrance in the garden. This is for bearded iris only. Beardless iris
are heavy feeders and need plenty of the big 3. If you are shipped any
rhizomes that are huge like potatoes, hang them upside down outside for
at least a week, and watch the water drip out!!!
How is MA this time of year, and how was your bloom season.
Thumbs-up!
Dennis
drstone@roanoke.infi.net
