I use 6-20-10...I get a 50 lb. bag for around $27 (that's including tax).

If you do buy alfalfa, be sure it has no added salt to it.

Thanks for the link the Arlyn.

I think rabbits might want those alfalfa pellets! You should also be able to get alfalfa meal, which is a ground up alfalfa, and it would be easier to incorperate it into the soil I'm thinking. You would have to get that from a feed store I'm sure.

Thanks much for the link Arlyn!!

Rabbits. Oh dear, I do have them. Meal might be a better solution. Thanks for the warning about added salt Rob!

If you put down pellets and moisten them they will quickly break apart and can be worked lightly into the soil. No rabbit problems then.

I get my alfalfa meal from Amish/Mennonite farm store in Lancaster county. Only place I could find the "meal" in my area.

I am sure my options will be a bit limited too. If I headed toward the coastal plain there are a lot more grain and feed stores. Which sounds like a great excuse to head to the outer banks!

Sounds lovely Leslie! Road trip!!!

Does anyone know what exactly the alfalfa meal/pellets adds to the soil? I would think it would he a high nitrogen amendment...so that doesn't make sense to me. I have added alfalfa to my compost...but I'm wondering about adding it directly around the irises?

2.5-1-1 or something close to that

So it's not too heavy on the nitrogen...as long as one doesn't overdo it! Thanks Greg!

The alfalfas pellets (and meal) that I use have no salt added (some 'brands" do, and if so, it's always marked on the bag), "test out" at 3-0-2, as far as fertilizer value. That would mean that in 100 pounds of pellets, there is 3 pounds of nitrogen.....but, being a totally organic product, it is "slow release', or, in other words , it's released gradually as the pellet 'rots away"......and, since the bacteria that digest (rot) organic matter need nitrogen to do their job, most, if not all ,the three ponds is "tied up", and not available to the plants. The big benefit to the alfalfa is the "natural growth hormone"(and without a google search, I can't remember the chemical name ) that 'helps" give other plants a "growth boost"...it's 'documented" that iris, roses, daylilies, and mums benefit from it (and probably other plants as well, but I can find no references). This "growth hormone" is what makes alfalfa such a good "cover crop"(along with it's "nitrogen fixing " properties), and such a good forage crop (animals know what's good for them !( except the turkeys at Rob's house ). As to "luring" rabbits, or other "critters" into the bed, I have seen no sign that the alfalfa is a problem. As was stated earlier, as soon as the pellets get damp, they fall apart, and as I usually try to "scratch them into the soil surface', or mix them into the 'hole" at planting time, they aren't really available for 'rabbit food', anyway. I would say the thing to do ,is give them a try, at least on a few plants, and see if they seem to work for you.I would also recommend that before you do very much ,as far as soil "amendments", that you have a soil test done. It's pretty hard to "add what you need' ,if you don't KNOW what you need !

Excellent information Arlyn!!! That addresses my concern and curiosity very thoroughly! (He's one that I have 'starred' for future reference!) Thanks so much for taking the time to explain!

Yes, thanks Arlyn.. good info on Alfalfa..
I used to mess around with Cottonseed meal and kelp mixed into my potting soil.. I bought a big bag of green sand once because Martha Stewart was raving about it. It was supposed to prevent peach leaf curl (hahahaha!).. Then there was the bat guano.. I've tried all sorts of things over the years, but I can't remember anymore if I tried Alfalfa. One of the nice things about getting older, is having everything be new again... and again..

Yeah, I can do the same cross word puzzle every day.....and it always stumps me .

Sad -- but true, Sherry.

"Yeah, I can do the same cross word puzzle every day.....and it always stumps me

Yesterday I found alfalfa meal at the local feedstore. Gonna dig it in. The soil is in lovely
shape now, since we had substantial rain last week. More rain due next week.
Hoping all is well in the gardens of the irisarians!

Yea..... more rain! I'm sure your irises will appreciate your hard work!

I found the following interesting, and wondered if any of you had tried it? I have to use lime on parts of my yard anyway to inhibit moss, so it would be easy to spread the lime over the bearded iris beds too. (yes, I keep the lime far away from my Japanese, in case anyone wondered).

" One tip that I learned from Barry Blyth is worth repeating. In early spring as the iris stalks begin to emerge, sprinkle a
gentle application of agricultural lime directly onto the rhizomes and lightly cover the soil adjacent to them. This goes
a long way in preventing both soft rot and crown rot. An inexpensive 50 pound bag will be more than enough to treat a
sizable planting and it will melt away before bloom begins. "
(Phil Williams, Rocky Top Gardens, Page 26, 2014 Catalog)

have not heard of this. I do have a "moss" issue in a couple of the beds near pine trees.

I've used Lime sulphur in the past to control lichen on the trees in the orchard. I like the idea of using it to prevent rot... Thank-you Leslie..