I was given some Iris bulbs two years ago. I planted them in a couple of my raised beds. This spring I want to dig them up and transplant them to another area. I do not know their proper name. They are a re-blooming double white Iris. I would like to know what depth I should replant them. They did not bloom in the spring but many of them bloomed in the fall.

Here is a picture with a couple of them that I dug up last fall and transplanted to this new bed when they were already blooming.

Looks like the iris you have is the re-bloomer called Immortality, especially if it has a small bit of yellow on the beard. (photo below) It's pretty hardy. Iris have whats called a rhizome, not a bulb , it's more like a stem then a root, and therefore it should be left partly exposed. I've heard it said that you should think of the rhizome as a duck on water. The feet and part of the body under water, and the rest above it. For best results, dig a hole and put a handful of bone meal down there and then cover it with soil. Then make a mound of soil and put half the roots on each side of it, and then pack the dirt in over the roots, but leave the rhizome about half way exposed. It's really important NOT to use mulch around them. It holds too much moisture and can cause rot, which will kill the iris. It's best to clip the leaves off to about 5 or 6 inches, otherwise the wind can uproot them until the roots get established. Good luck, and visit the iris forum, you'll find some great people and see some nice irises.

, Tom. I am so excited about getting these Iris' in the permanent place in my yard. A friend of mine gave them to me and didn't realize that she had given me mostly white re-blooming. Thanks for the great information. I will do things just the way you suggested.

You can see two raised beds on the right in this picture that I planted these Iris' in. So you can see I have a lot of them to transplant.


Below are two more pictures of the raised beds with the white Iris.

You sure have a lot of them, you might want to try to add some other darker colored ones among them for contrast.
Breakers, a re-bloomer, but our season is too short

Brilliance, a nice orange

Crooked Little Smile a nice bi color

Sharp Dressed Man a deep pruple

Tying Yellow Ribbons a nice yellow self

They come in lots of colors, and can be mixed with other flowers, just don't over water them.

Have fun!

Thanks so much for the lovely pictures. Your Iris' are beautiful. I would like some of all of them. LOL....I think I will plant some inside my raised bed garden. Along the back border fence I usually plant Cannas. Maybe I will plant some of these Iris along the inside back and the one inside 2-rail fence. Do you have any rhizomes I could buy from you? I am getting some new ones in the spring from Dutchman. I can't wait for winter to be over. Thanks for your advice Tom.

Although you can transplant irises any time, he best time to transplant is July, after they bloom in our zone. Why don't you tree mail me in June befor I'm dividing mine and I'll see what I can do. I have over 600 varieties. Yes, I'm crazy!

Thanks Tom,
I will really try to remember. Sometimes my memory does not do me well but I will make a note on the calendar to remember to contact you. Thanks so much for your help.

Well, just remember, the memory thing doesn't improve with age.

An iris grows from a rhizome, not a bulb. The rule of thumb on planting bulbs is 3x their length.