Wow, thanks again everyone for all the useful information. I treated the irises with Bonide last year, and didn't lose any to rot or borers, which had happened in past years. I had several irises in one gallon pots that were bought at a local nursery last spring, which were planted in the ground in the fall. The root systems were unbelievable, and I had to cut the pots away to remove the irises. All of this great information will help me grow better irises this year. Annette

What I personally do with my irises is just scratch a burial plot about the same thickness of the rhizome, put the rhizome in the little plot, then lightly cover it up. Personally, I've found that winter watering/snow makes for the best blooms. I don't have any rebloomers (yet), but I love the tall swords that seem to not care about anything. All my original irises are in a rock bed that gets SOOOOOOOOO little water during the non-winter months and only snow during the winter months. I have 2 other areas with irises.. last year I was rewarded with lots of blooms in one area, but the other area is brand new to irises and I only got 1 bloom out of all the irises I planted (in May.. and one bloomed about 3 weeks later!!).

:)

Thanks for the planting info Torie.It helps to have it. I followed Shreiners, information and drawings plus tips from Polly.
I will continue to improve my planting.

I set the irises on a ridge, then dig the holes to each side for the roots. rhizome is covered halfway. Remember it is a stem, not 'bulbs' so don't plant too deep.

I tried the ridge thing but I dig the hole first and add a mound in the middle. I think the mounds settles duering the winter and then soil washes over the rizome. I am I am a Capricorn,we have an obcessive need to get things right even if it takes a lifetime..

LOLLLLLL. 2 falls ago (Fall 2010) I received a ton of iris rhizomes from a fellow gardener here (Zuzu) and when I buried them along my fenceline in the backyard, I did the "burial plot" thing as the ground was solid from lack of moisture. In fact, when I put them in, it looked like I buried like 50 tiny mouse bodies with the fans sticking up as headstones! Too bad I didn't take a picture.. it was funny as anything. Sometimes if the ground's just too darned hard, I just cover the rhizome with rocks (specifically in my rock bed in the front). Anything to protect it from the sun. They can take heat, but not sun.

Whaaaaa

I think each person has to determine how deeply to put their rhizomes in the soil through some trial and error. In my garden I've discovered over a few years that they grow best if buried 1/2 to 2/3 deep into the soil because of my very fine, silty soil that does not hold water very long. I've tried them on top of the soil, too, and this just seems to work best for me -- plus I even add mulch over the summer. But then we get up in the 100's with very intense sunlight in the summer months...

I dig a hole, mix a handful of bone meal in, and then I build half of it it back up to ground level and put the rhizome on that ledge and let the roots hang over, then fill the rest of the hole. And I compact things a bit, too, since our soil is so light that if I don't use pressure everything will surely sink too much later on.

I plant mine on top of the ground, but the water manages to get them covered lightly, and they're fine like that.

As I read down everyones methods I am more convinced my holes were too deep.

How I was taught by a hybridizer was think of swans on a lake. The fans would be like the neck and head, the rhizome itself would be the body on top of the water and the roots its feet. Good advice for me.

D

Dee, that's a beautiful way to explain planting! I think I'll make up a poster with a swan on it and an iris rhizome and display that at our next club sale. We get a lot of people asking how to plant, and i get tired of just using a tub of dirt to show them. They'll remember the swan analogy a lot better, i think.

Well this was told to me by the late Duane Meeks and it has always stuck with me.

D

I start with Swans in July-August but by the folowing Marcg the rizomes mare under dirt.