Re: OT BIO

Hi Sheri!
     Welcome to Iris-L! Don't be shy about joining us in the pool - there
is a lot to learn and many interesting, and some very knowledgable, people
to meet.

You write (30 Mar 97):
>Hi everyone,
> I just subscribed to the list yesterday, I'm just now getting enough
> nerve to post. I live in Zone 9, the soil is sandy and alkaline. I
> do have some TB but I don't know the names of any of them, they were
> given to me, they are surviving but rarely bloom. I'm reading on basic
> care so I don't bore anyone with a basic question. I am very interested
> in breeding, can anyone suggest some varieties that will set seed or any
> other information? I just started breeding vegetables last year, and
> Zephyr lillies a few years ago-just waiting for them to bloom, maybe
> this year. Anyway, thanks for your ear and for any information that comes
> down the pike.

I am sure there are people on the list who can give you helpful ideas about
getting more consistent bloom from your TBs. It helps when giving advice to
know where you are located geograhically. From the comments you made, it is
obviously somewhere in the Southwest or southern California, but it would
really help to have more specific information on your whereabouts.

Breeding iris can be a lot of fun (I do a little bit myself), and it isn't
all that difficult to do. Most TBs are fertile when mated with other TBs,
although sometimes the pollen is sterile or the variety can't set seed, or
in rare cases is totally infertile. Basically, all you need to do is pluck
an anther with ripe pollen and brush it on the stigmatic lip of a freshly
opened flower to get the seed forming process going. If pollen gets wet it
loses its fertility, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem in your
climate. If it gets really hot during your iris bloom season, fertility of
crosses will probably be improved if they are made in the early morning. It
is not necessary to cover the pollinated flower or otherwise protect it
after you have pollinated it, as contamination of a cross by insects is
rare. It is a good idea to label your crosses when you make them by
attaching a tag to the stem of the flower you have pollinated. Soon after
the flower fades, the pod should start to swell if your cross was
successful, and in two to three months they should ripen and you can
harvest the seeds. There are a number of different methods for handling and
sowing the seeds. The simplest is to just plant them in some prepared
ground in your garden, sowing them about 1" apart and 3/4" deep. 

This is just the barebones of breeding iris, of course. Keep your eye on
the list, and I am sure you will soon be able to pick up a lot more
detailed info on this subject.

Jeff Walters in northern Utah (Zone 4)
cwalters@cache.net
"This is the Place" - between iris on Easter Sunday; the reticulatas are
gone and nothing else is ready to take their place.
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