Teresa,Didn't you live in Kentucky not that long ago or am I mistaken?
I know how much you love iris.With that many iris it would be a terrible loss + the $$$$ involved.
I think everyone is right.It seems that potting all of them would be the only solution,and finding a way to water them especially initially. Hopefully, you would return frequently enough to water them after that.There would be a lot of labor to dig and pot and expense of the pots and soil.
I guess the best solution would be to get your husband to change his mind on this idea
