I missed out on Chocolate Halo at the iris sale. So nice that they sent you two of them! Oh and Dark Icon is nice too!

Tom, you can take off the pink tutu now.

I think that you got the prize.

But it hasn't rained yet!

Maybe it did for Rob?

Love the edging on the standards for Dark Icon! Really liked Cosmic Blast & Amber Rainbow on the introductions page too.

tveguy3 said:I am thinking of potting some iris for sale next spring. I have some odds and ends of extra ones that I don't want to toss out, so I think I might try potting them, and selling them next spring when people come to see the bloom. I haven't done that before, and need some advice.

1. Do I need to dig the pots into the ground, or will they be OK above ground, but grouped together?

2. Should I uses potting mix or regular soil?

3. How big a pot should I use for a TB? It would be nice if they would get blooms on them.

4. Anyone in zone 5 or colder ever done this?

Thanks, all responces appreciated!

I am wanting to do this same thing and I have the same questions. Did it end up working out?

I do this often...I do not bury the pots but keep them where the sun does not reach them so they heat up and then get cold at night. I use potting soil. My garden soil contains a lot of clay and sets up like concrete in a pot. I use 1 gallon pots. If the winter is mild I give them a couple of drinks. I have also piled snow on them.

I didn't end up potting any last year, but I keep thinking I should do that and have some blooming in pots to sell during my bloom time next year. Now to get the time and energy to do that! Maybe this year. I always get visitors during bloom time, so I could easily sell a few I'm sure.

We put our seeds in a pot in a trench. then they germinate. Here in MA I would not put them above ground.

Paul! You're back!!!!!

Good to see you back Paul!

Goodness, it's been a long time. We are all glad that you have recovered.

Shreiner's recommends a specific formula they recommend for potting. It is pumice, fir bark, & peat moss... I don't know the percentages off the top of my head but I think it was about 40% pumice 35% bark 25% peat.. I was thinking of experimenting with some historics that I would probably just toss or put somewhere they wouldn't be seen anyways so if I lose thrm, no biggy. I'd have to order the pumice, I've never seen it for sale before. The fur bark I can get in small quanities as orchid mix but it would be nice to find a bigger bag.

Just to clarify a bit....peat MOSS, and "peat", are two different things....sort of ! Peat moss....comes in a 'bale", like straw, or hay, and , when it's shredded, is used in a lot of 'soilless ' potting mixes. "Peat", on the other hand....is what the "peat moss", and other "swamp" plants turn into after a few thousand years of aging.....it is actually "soil". Just wanted to throw that out there, because if you buy a bag of 'peat".....that's probably NOT what Schreiner's uses!
Sphagnum Moss is the 'right" name for "peat moss", and you should be able to find it, either shredded, or baled, at a good garden store.

When we were at Hosta House in Salt Lake City last summer the owner said that many of the large companies which pot perennials are using a wood based mix. That is what he is switching to.......

Lowes has Sphagnum Moss, 3 cubic feet, for about $10. I can usually put a sizable dent in their supply. I mix it with their 'Top Soil' along with Perlite for potting.

Blessings

My climate is different from most everyone else's here, but I use Scotchman's Landscaper Mix from Lowes. No amendments, straight out of the bag and into the pot. It is pine bark fines, peat, and perlite.

I pot up my excess fans as singles every July in gallon pots in potting soil. I leave them to grow for a month to make sure all is good. Then I sell some to anyone interested. Leftovers stay in the pots but I sink them down into some raised beds I have. In March or when they earth has thawed enough that I can get them out of the ground, I move the plants into the greenhouse to grow. They wake up quickly and by plant sale time in May, they are looking good. Some even have buds depending on the size of the rhizome.

I must confess that most of my pots have the garden mix I use in the garden for planting. I have lots of that and ran out of potting mix. Since many of my potted iris bloomed, and they didn't suffer rot like those in the garden I feel they are fine in this mix. I do plan on getting them all out of pots soon though!

crowrita1 said:Just to clarify a bit....peat MOSS, and "peat", are two different things....sort of ! Peat moss....comes in a 'bale", like straw, or hay, and , when it's shredded, is used in a lot of 'soilless ' potting mixes. "Peat", on the other hand....is what the "peat moss", and other "swamp" plants turn into after a few thousand years of aging.....it is actually "soil". Just wanted to throw that out there, because if you buy a bag of 'peat".....that's probably NOT what Schreiner's uses!
Sphagnum Moss is the 'right" name for "peat moss", and you should be able to find it, either shredded, or baled, at a good garden store.

Yes very good to point out. I was just trying to shorten peat moss to peat because I had already written it.
However I always thought of Sphagnum Moss as totally different than what is used in plant mix. I thought that was like what a lot of orchids come potted in and also used for terrariums. I have a bag here of it and it is tan and almost stringy, while the bales of peat moss I buy are more similar to something between soil and broken down bark mulch. Not sure if I was thinking on using the correct stuff.

I copied what Shreiner's has on their site. I was off on the percentages.

Quote "Iris can be successfully grown in containers. A 6" to 8" pot will work for Dwarf Iris; a 12" pot will work for Tall Bearded Iris. Make sure your pot has good drainage. For soil, we recommend 45% fir bark, 20% pumice, and 35% peat moss. Leave at least one inch below the pot's rim, and leave the top of the rhizome exposed. Water only when the top two inches of soil are dry. Overwatering will cause rot. Keep the pot outdoors during the winter. When bloom buds begin to appear in the fans, bring the pot inside and place in a bright sunny window. After bloom, be sure to divide your Iris and replant outside or into more pots."