Re: CULT: JI: pH
From: "Mark, Maureen" <MARKM@tc.gc.ca>
James,
I think that we are going to have get out the pH meter too. We've grown JIs
from seed alongside the beardeds in the same soil. But last year, we bought
a few named varieties, including a few introductions, and lost many. The
only one that has clearly made it through is BUTTERFLIES IN FLIGHT. I think
the pH range is likely to be large and dependent on the cultivar.
With respect to N-P-K, we find that compost and alfalfa pellets in heavy
clay soil provides the right balance of nutrients -- no idea what the
numbers are though.
Maureen Mark
m*@ottawa.com
Ottawa, Canada (zone 4)
> From: James Brooks <hirundo@tricon.net>
>
> I've had a devil of a time in raising Japanese Iris, largely due to two
> factors: adequate moisture and pH. I think I now have a handle on the
> problem, thanks to the purchase of a pH meter and a bunch of those
> expensive little plastic faucets one can put on a gallon milk jug (not
> near
> as expensive as drilling a well, installing a pump and running in
> electricity - the cart behind my ridey mower perfectly fits 25 one-gallon
> jugs.)
> I had used a pH meter for soil testing, but somehow lost it. Instead I had
> been making about every third or fourth watering a Miracid solution. My
> purpose for the pH meter was really to see whether I was killing my
> expensive Japanese iris by watering with gallons of hard water from my
> well.
> Filling a jug with water I stuck the probe in the jug 7.0! I might as well
> be filtering it through gypsum board.
> The solution (an appropriate term) turned out to be two teaspoons per
> gallon of vinegar for a 5.8 pH reading. I can just hear the sighs of
> relief
> from my JIs now. We had .6 inch or rain last night, so I won't be trying
> this for a couple days, but by using the pH meter and a little vinegar, it
> appears that water pH can be perfectly altered to suit the individual
> plant.
> I'll keep you all posted on the results. Also bought a soil test kit so I
> can test before I fertilize. I have a feeling that our heavy clay soil
> needs more Nitrogen than the books which recommend 6-12-12 or something of
> that ilk. If anyone knows the desirable levels of N-P-K for both bearded
> and beardless iris, I'd appreciate hearing from you.
>
> James Brooks
> Jonesborough, TN
> hirundo@tricon.net
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