Re: Re: CULT: Stalk/pod rot (was Rebloom -- Wearing Rubies)

I just wanted to report some success in dealing with rot on stalks and pods.

STALKS:  Last year and again already this year, I have successfully brought
pods to ripeness by cutting the stalk above the rot point and sticking the
stalk upright in a potato  --  an idea gleaned from other irisarians long
since.  I choose a screwdriver or other tool that matches the diameter of
the stalk to punch a hole in the potato.  That gives it a nice, close fit,
so that the moisture is funneled into the stem and nothing is lost to
evaporation.

PODS:  I always try to salvage the seeds in a rotted pod, if they appear to
have reached full size, by washing them off, separating and drying them.
Although this is unpleasant, it sometimes results in saving viable seeds.
This spring, I tried something new.  I found the top one-fifth of a pod on
KIT FOX had rotted.  So, I carefully dug up the rhizome and, using a very
sharp knife, cut off that portion of the pod, exposing the seeds.  Then I
potted the rhizome and set it in a window that gets morning sun.  Three days
ago, I harvested 27 good-looking seeds from it.  (The pods stuck in potatoes
are set on a window ledge that gets no sun.  I'm not sure that this makes
any beneficial difference, but it works.)  Don't forget to water the rhizome
enough to keep the soil moist.  --  Griff

zone 7 in Virginia

----- Original Message -----
From: "Neil A Mogensen" <neilm@charter.net>
To: "Iris-talk" <iris@hort.net>
Sent: Wednesday, June 23, 2004 1:54 AM
Subject: [iris] Re: CULT: Rebloom -- Wearing Rubies


>>
> Neil Mogensen  z 7  western NC mountains---"same old--same old" cycle of
rain,
> downpours, sprinkles, more downpours.  A lot of stalks have rotted out
from
> under pods.
>
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