Viewing post #1184686 by caitlinsgarden

I try not to do this much work any more with the irises; your routine sounds exhausting!

yadah_tyger said:This is my next favorite time of the year. I set up my outside work area with a table that is a little taller then waist high. I then dig up each clump and bring it to the table. There I cut all blooms stalks all the way down to the rhizome. I remove all dead or older fans, exposing the rhizome to more air. I do any necessary surgery and sprinkle with comet with bleach. I then replant the clump and give the mother rhizome a good rinsing with MKP solution. In doing this I also get to thinning if needed. This year there is more urgent need in thinning due to Iris Virus!!! I'm not at all where I want to be in the process due to the very excessive rain. I really dislike working in mud but not much choice.
It is also great therapy for RA. The chemo and steroid treatments aren't working so a good workout in the garden seems to help. I can usually get about 5 miles in equivalent steps in each day and hopefully by the end of June I'll be done, found room for the newbies, have one new bed built and lose 15 or 20 pounds.

Blessings