re:deeper and deeper into Iris addiction
- To: Multiple recipients of list <i*@rt66.com>
- Subject: re:deeper and deeper into Iris addiction
- From: C* S* <C*@qntm.com>
- Date: Thu, 21 May 1998 17:29:13 -0600 (MDT)
John Jones wondered ...=20
I have a walkway with narrow (12"-15" wide) beds along one side of my =
house.
They are protected on one side by a 5' solid fence and the other side =
by the
house. Gets very little (maybe 1 =BD hours) direct sun during the =
summer. Even
less in the winter.
Do you think SIBs would grow there (given good soil etc). I would be
somewhat concerned about lime leaching from the house foundation and =
the
fence post concrete but that has been in place for 30 years and 5 years
respectively, so I think I could counter it with amendments.
>>>
My experience is that you need at least 4 hours of strong light a day =
for
most Iris. The most shade tolerant of the modern hybrid Iris for me, =
have
been Louisiana's. I have mine in an area which is directly under a very
large and old and somewhat sparse deciduous oak, on the lee side of a =
hill
(no morning sun) and which also gets shaded by a guest cottage. To cut =
to
the chase - after the oak leafs out (mid April) these Iris get maybe 2 =
hours
of clear sunlight and diffuse high shade the rest of the day. I think =
the
key to this is the amount of shade - high shade is sufficient for good
growth - solid shade is not. By high shade I mean dappled sunlight =
through a
sparse and high tree canopy.
Chad Schroter Los Gatos California Zone 9b
