CULT: Clay/Raised beds
- To: iris-talk@onelist.com
- Subject: CULT: Clay/Raised beds
- From: v* l*
- Date: Mon, 28 Jun 1999 15:54:49 -0700 (PDT)
From: vince lewonski <vincelewonski@yahoo.com>
> Three years ago I put in several "real" raised beds
> (only a foot deep,
> 4'x8', 3 rows of landscape timber) aimed at irises, with
> essentially the
> same mix but more sand. The fish, pellets and manure I
> spread on the clay
> base, then filled up with the less-rich mix. There's a
> thin layer of sand on
> top of that, per Iris List advice. Everything since has
> shot up great guns,
> and both bloom and rebloom have produced well (for a site
> that gets less
> than half a day sun) but the rhizomes are getting packed
> pretty tight, so
> next weekend I plan to dig 'em all up, pull off the top
> layer, relay the
> rich base, and reseat big pieces. The spares will go to
> the area AIS sale
> the next weekend.
>
> I've been real happy with soil made this way, but if I
> do this major dig,
> should I forget about rebloom this fall? Or is there
> something I should do
> to encourage rebloom?
>
V. sez:
To encourage rebloom, I wouldn't dig up all the
rhizomes. Leave the biggest ones in the ground - digging
and replanting usually inhibit any chance of rebloom.
Additional water may help rebloom. If they are growing
as well as you say, they probably don't need additional
fertilizer at this point.
===
Vince Lewonski
vincelewonski@yahoo.com
Secane, PA Zone 6
"I love my irises like my children - and if they don't meet my expectations, I chop 'em into little bits and throw them on the mulch pile!!!"
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