Actually the sprouts look like they are growing off the long sides of the rhizome.

Sorry for the confusion. I am fairly new to iris and I had read on the forums earlier that a off shoot has a heel and toe (cut part) I believe the new growth comes out of the heel part. So should I place the toes together to leave extra room for the new growth coming out of the heel??

That's what I do if they are small rhizomes. Medium and large rhizomes get their own pot.

Ok, thank you. I am glad I did that right. I should have asked to be certain before I planted more this week!

I am going to experiment a bit with an iris in a pot this winter. I have one seedling that fell out or was pulled out of one of the pots by something, so I planted it by itself in a small pot. Now I'm going to put it into a larger pot, and leave it outside probably until the first of the year or so. Then I'm going to bring it into the basement and put it in a sunny window. On warmer days I'll take it outside in the sun. I'm going to try to force it to see if I can make it bloom faster. Should be fun, but it's a kind of small one. I have no idea which cross it came from, and I'm sure I'll never know. I've been wanting to do that, so here's my chance.

Would love to know if that works! Some years back, I had my first ever bearded iris delivered from the UK in pots in February. I kept them inside and one of them (SDB) bloomed in April, which is very early here. But I do not know if that was because it was inside or because it came from a warmer place...

Anyone ever use the frost blankets on potted plants?

A lot people in my area cover potted plants. A lot of them also have aloe of various large sizes which get a whole blanket. I stood boxes over my potted irises when frost was a threat early spring and a bloom stalk has started.

I believe she leaves them on during a freeze too. It can let in some light and water. I am sure they would need good drainage.

My pots were left to the elements. I had the pots all close together and raked leaves around the bases for insulation but otherwise they were left on their own. They did just fine. The only time I covered them with some pine branches was before an ice storm.

Thanks, I picked up some more pots today. The nursery guys said at one time he had over 1000 in pots! He rarely lost over 10 or 15, but he said the frost blankets would work well too. Thanks everyone for posting.

We live NE of Boston. Any pots to winter over we would put in a trench with our pots of seed. Screening over that to protect the seeds. We also have late planted plants in the garden with a rock on top of the rhizome to guard against heaving. rhizomes are ok, but you don't want the roots exposed to freezing weather.

Lucy, I love Boston and the surrounding areas. Not the winters so much

Not fond of winter either. However not as tough as Wisconsin where I grew up.

Lucy, I am wondering about putting bales of straw around the perimeter of several pots pushed closely together. I saw this at one perennial nursery just west of me. At least it would help with the wind.

It might protect the roots. That is the worry, the leaves take care of themselves, unless eaten by something.