Re: CULT: deformed irises
- To: <iris-talk@onelist.com>
- Subject: Re: CULT: deformed irises
- From: M* A* S*
- Date: Mon, 3 May 1999 20:12:23 -0400
From: "Merrily A. Smith" <merrilyann@erols.com>
I have several deformed stalks (stunted, bent, puny) among my historics and
on Edith Wolford; haven't noticed problems with flowers yet, but only ones
blooming so far are New Snow and Snoqualmie. I also notice that the outer
fan leaves of many plants are going limp and dying faster than usual. Edith
Wolford, for example, has a bloom stalk with only a few leaves. I haven't
dismissed the weather as a factor here, as we had a freeze after the plants
began to grow. Also, aphids (white, black, and especially gray) are a big
problem this season.
In addition, I've lost 11 bloom stalks to some critter that saws a line in
the stalk (parallel to the ground), sometimes deep enough that it falls over
of its own accord, or if it is lightly bumped or blown. Some stalks that
survived have up to four such lines, now scars, anywhere from 2-4" apart.
Somebody suggested that the critter might be an earwig. Any ideas?
Merrily in Washington, DC
-----Original Message-----
From: Dennis Kramb <dkramb@tso.cin.ix.net>
To: iris-talk@onelist.com <iris-talk@onelist.com>
Date: Monday, May 03, 1999 11:46 AM
Subject: [iris-talk] CULT: deformed irises
>From: Dennis Kramb <dkramb@tso.cin.ix.net>
>
>I have noticed something, and I wonder if the rest of you can corroborate
>my observations regarding bearded irises.
>
>Several irises this spring have bloomed with deformations (too many extra
>parts, too few parts, etc.). Each of these is a cultivar that reblooms.
>None of my older irises (introduced 30+ years ago) have these deformations,
>just the more modern ones.
>
>In a clump of dozens of flowers, it might only be one that is "goofy". Or,
>it could be the sole bloom on a newly planted rhizome. But it's always
>from a reblooming cultivar.
>
>I don't see any other commonalities between them.....not color, not
>hybridizer, not class. And I definitely don't think these deformations are
>weather induced. The weather here is perfect: 70's during the day, 50's
>during the night. Bright sunny days, occasional rain showers....for weeks
>now. And it is not chemical induced because I haven't used pesticides,
>herbicides, or fertilizers on them.
>
>There was one exception, ("of course" he says sarcastically), the historic
>non-reblooming miniature dwarf IRISH DOLL (1963) had one bloom (out of
>about 10) that was deformed.
>
>Any comments from the peanut gallery?
>
>Dennis Kramb; dkramb@tso.cin.ix.net
>Cincinnati, Ohio USA; USDA Zone 6; AIS Region 6
>Member of AIS, ASI, HIPS, SIGNA, SLI, & Miami Valley Iris Society
>Primary Interests: ABs, REBs, LAs, Native Ohio SPEC and SPEC-X hybrids
>(Check out my web page at http://www.badbear.com/dkramb/home.html)
>
>
>
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