Re: CULT: Transplanting TB
- To: i*@onelist.com
- Subject: Re: CULT: Transplanting TB
- From: "* A* M* <w*@Ra.MsState.Edu>
- Date: Sun, 4 Oct 1998 11:36:08 -0500 (CDT)
From: "Walter A. Moores" <wam2@Ra.MsState.Edu>
I don't want to 'debunk' Rosalie's formula for iris bloom success,
for apparently it works for her in her climate near Baltimore.
However, one needs to consider the climate in which one garden's
before adding soil amendments. If I used Rosalie's recipe in my gardens
in Texas or in Mississippi, it would mean instant rot. The heat we have
combined with the rainfall and the soil amendments would work together to
form a disaster in our beds. A nearby garden is currently suffering from
the woes of horse manure. In the spring, this garden produced show
stalks, but during the summer's heat, clump after clump rotted away.
Contact others in your area and find out what they add that
results in success.
Several of us locally question the use of alfalfa in preparing
iris beds. First, even though it is tilled into the bed, it tends to
create an unsightly, greenish scum on top of the iris beds over winter in
this area. It may also cause lush growth which is nipped back or
completely killed by a late cold snap. Also, we really haven't seen any
differences between the iris beds treated with alfalfa pellets and those
which haven't when seasons are normal.
On the other hand, a sickly plant has responded to a cup of
alfalfa tea in the spring or summer.
Spending money on alfalfa in our area may be a waste of money.
For those in other climates who see benefits, then use it and show off
your pretty blooms and humongous rhizomes. I wish it worked here.
Mississippi delta alluvial soil or loess type soils elsewhere in the state
seem fertile enough. Lime and a balanced fertilizer will result in
successful iris bloom in North Mississippi.
Walter Moores
Enid Lake, MS 7/8
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