Re: Why don't they bloom!
- To: Multiple recipients of list <i*@rt66.com>
- Subject: Re: Why don't they bloom!
- From: s*@aristotle.net (J. Michael, Celia or Ben Storey)
- Date: Sun, 18 May 1997 10:20:00 -0600 (MDT)
>PS these
>gardens are by the driveway, but so are most of the other iris, and they
>seem to be doinmg fine. I planted 12 rhizomes in an approximately 3x4
>garden.
Dear Rusty,
Were the rhizomes you first planted spent mothers that have had to put on
new increases? This situation happens a lot. You plant what appears to be a
nice fat rhizome without realizing it's already flowered and can only set
increases for you. You will get the blooms off the increases, eventually.
They might just have been too young to set buds this year.
Other factors to consider:
* Is the bed in full sun?
* Are these non-blooming irises planted on the periphery of the bed closest
to your lawn? If you are fertilizing your lawn with a high-nitrogen
fertilizer, it might be seeping over onto these iris. High nitrogen favors
foliage production rather than bloom.
* Are they planted on the bed periphery closest to the drive? If the drive
is concrete, it could be leaching enough to push up soil alkalinity. Your
foliage would look sick in that case.
celia
storey@aristotle.net
Little Rock, Arkansas
