So far it hasn't been too bad here, but it is early yet, and maybe with all this wet weather things will get worse. I did loose one Rhizome of Hospitality that I planted last summer. Good thing is, I planted 2 rhizomes, one next to the other. One is rotted and dead including the increases, the one next to it is doing fine and has some increases going. Go figure.
I increased two beds a bit last year to plant new ones. I decided not to add any compost, as I believe if it isn't broken down enough it has too much bacteria in it. In those two areas, NONE of the new plantings show any sign of problems yet. I have an inkling that perhaps we are over feeding, and thus over growing the rhizomes to a point where they are less hardy. Just a hypothesis that needs testing. I worry that putting un-decomposed organic matter like alfalfa meal/pellets may be a cause of problems too. It needs to break down, and it takes a lot of bacteria for that to happen. My biggest areas of problems occurring over the last couple of years has been where rabbits have deposited a lot of their droppings. These of course need to decompose and are filled with bacteria. My soil here is really rich, so I don't think I'm going to add any more organic material to areas where I plan to plant irises. We'll have to see how that goes.
I also wonder if we removed the top few inches of soil, lay down a layer of compost, and then cover it with good soil leaving the compost to decay and become available when the roots grow through it if that might work better then mixing it into the very top layer. Since the nutrients are taken up by the roots, not the rhizome. Another experiment that someone might want to make.
