Re: re:CULT - root shaving thoughts
From: John I Jones <jijones@ix.netcom.com>
Chad Schroter wrote:
>
> From: Chad Schroter <Chad.Schroter@quantum.com>
>
> My own observations agree with both sides - old roots can indeed
> regrow when planted, and rhizomes with insufficient roots (or shaved) will
> grow totally new roots. Of course often a future bloomout can be predicted
> from a mature rhizome which starts off with few roots and then does not grow
> more. What causes this is a big mystery - but I have found that often just
> moving that iris to another spot will get it to grow.
>
> More on the roots. I have observed that those dug from dry soil have
> plumped up - as if they are storing moisture in response to dry soil
> conditions. If I dig iris from damp soil often the roots are narrow and
> stringy. The plump roots store very well and rejuvenate when replanted. The
> stringy ones are usually dried out and lifeless within a week - and do not
> regrow when replanted. Thus it is recommended to dig the Iris after a period
> of dryness - usually 1 month without irrigation will do the trick. The
> rhizomes are then hardened and dormant and will store the longest. Rhizomes
> dug from damp soil - which are actively growing need to be replanted within
> a few days for best results.
>
> Virtually all the rhizomes I have been shipped from many different
> suppliers have the healthy - plump roots of a dormant rhizome.
Chad,
I am not disagreeing with your observations, but most of the growers I have
talked at length with do not harden off their fields. They can't, their
shipping seasons are too long. Maybe my sample is too small.
John | "There be dragons here"
| Annotation used by ancient cartographers
| to indicate the edge of the known world.
________________________________________________
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