Re: HYB: rebloom and roots

When digging up old plants to make room for seedlings, I've not dug down more than a foot or so, but roots of strong cultivars are definitely down deeper than I dig. Like Betty says, they grow where the growing is easiest and grow more where they encounter food and water.
Water table here is anywhere from a few to a dozen feet or so below the surface, so any iris that can grow deep roots has a better chance to survive drought conditions here.
When I lay out new rows here, I use the farm tractor and subsoiler, which runs about 2 feet below the surface. Because of the gravel and rocks, the soil stays relatively loose in that track. So I assume iris roots on strong cultivars go at least that deep.
Roots on some cultivars seem to tolerate heavy rain more than others. I'd often thought that those that are thriving while it's dry, then suddenly rot out after heavy rain might be growing roots in soil voids that become saturated after rain and smother, while more tolerant ones might only grow new roots when soil is wetter, thus avoiding those hazardous zones. Sort of like building a house in a floodplain during a dry cycle <g> 

< The interesting thing is  that the feeder
roots had been smothered.  They were dead.  I peeled  them off in layers.
Apparently the constant rain was enough to do serious damage even though it 
didn't show any evidence of actually killing the  plants. .>

<I am curious.  Do roots really go down two feet?>
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Linda Mann east Tennessee USA zone 7/8
East Tennessee Iris Society <http://www.DiscoverET.org/etis>
Region 7, Kentucky-Tennessee <http://www.aisregion7.org>
American Iris Society web site <http://www.irises.org>
talk archives: <http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-talk/>
photos archives: <http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-photos/>
online R&I <http://www.irisregister.com>

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