Re: CULT: weather, weeds, & irises

Well, that is good news to me, Linda.  Our iris beds are covered in beautiful wild flowers (that is my story and I'm sticking to it!).  We will be getting out there to clean them out very soon now that the weather has moderated.  I hope we find that our irises are as happy as your are!  I have heard from other irisarians that weeds...oops, wild flowers...are not bad for irises, especially during the summer months.  We have certainly given that theory a good test this year!  Will let y'all know what the outcome is.

Judy Hunt in Louisville, KY, Zone 6


  This has been a wierd growing season for sure - record heat for the
  summer, drought approaching the worst we have had, humidity high the
  whole time, followed by 7 inches (!) of rain in the last few days and
  possibly a lot more by the weekend.

  The irises look better than I ever remember seeing them.

  I abandoned the weeds during the worst of the summer heat, leaving a
  high canopy of foxtail millet that totally took over the 'good' part of
  the garden, and a mix of Sida (don't know the common name), lamb's
  quarters, quack grass, and a few other nameless weeds between the gravel
  rows.  When it finally 'cooled' off enough to start wading thru the
  weeds to spray Roundup, hand pull, and stomp down, I discovered all
  these healthy happy irises underneath the shade of the tall weeds.  With
  all the rain and cooler temps, they have put on phenomenal new growth
  (for here anyway).

  Jimmy Burch tells me that the weeds help protect the irises in the
  summer - I thought he was just telling me a joke among gardeners who get
  chased out of the garden by prospective heat stroke, but now I wonder.

  --
  Linda Mann east Tennessee USA zone 7/8

  Tennessee Whooping Crane Walkathon:
  <http://www.whoopingcranesovertn.org>
  American Iris Society web site <http://www.irises.org>
  iris-talk/Mallorn archives: <http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-talk/>
  iris-photos/Mallorn archives: <http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-photos/>




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