I did not have too much iris rot last winter. However, a lot of the members of CAIS lost most of their irises to rot. One member lost over 400 culitvars. I was curious as to why some of us experienced little rot while other gardens were decimated. So..... I sort of took an unofficial poll. Without being too nosey I chatted with growers and asked whether or not their gardening methods had changed, whether they had changed their soil amendments, etc. One member lost all of the irises in a 'new' bed. He had used new amendments on that one alone. Other members with substantial losses had also used new organic products. I think in my area that it was perhaps a combination of both the weather and products introduced into the soil. I read your post and totally agree that we need to give protection to the irises that are new to our area...... perhaps for several winters. We do not get nearly as cold as your folks up north but last winter we got considerably colder than where a lot of my irises came from. My question is, what is a good protection for irises. I can leave the oak leaves on the ground overwinter but I have been told in the past that harmful insects overwinter or lay their eggs to overwinter in leaves or debris. Would pine needle mulch be a better prospect?.... pine bark mulch? Or perhaps leave the oak leaves on until very early spring? Any guidance would be appreciated.
