Hardiness Zone: 7a
Leah from Shelbyville, TN
Mowing them is fine after they are done blooming, but it is always best to wait until late in the season so the foliage has ample time to store nutrients for next year's bloom. Tell your hubby to hold off or even skip it this year and see if they come back strong next year. If not, then you need to look at other possible causes.
When irises fail to bloom it is usually due to nutrient deficiencies, inappropriate watering, incorrect planting depth, or overcrowding. In your case, you mentioned that your irises bloomed well for the first 2-3 years, but have failed to come back strong since. Have you divided them in the past few years? In not, I suspect they are in need of some breathing room by now. After a period of 2-3 years, irises start to grow into clumps and become overcrowded. They won't bloom well again until you give them a bit of breathing room.
Another cause to consider is whether a few years of mowing over them have buried the rhizomes under a bit of lawn mower mulch. If these are bearded irises, they should be sitting in the soil so the tops of the rhizomes are at or only very slightly below the soil's surface. If planted too deeply, you will see foliage, but no flowers.
Ellen
Mowing them should not damage them at all. Iris's are hardy. You may need to uncover the tubers however and pull some of them apart.
I am not a gardener but, I have Iris as they almost grow wild. The tubers seem to work there way out of the soil, so just brush the soil away. Look at the top bunch of tubers and see if they look eaten or mushy. Bugs will often times feed on the top bunch. Pull those off lightly. Then just cover the others up.
If you are mowing down the tops, you are not allowing the tubers to "feed" and build up energy for the following year. The leaves are there to process the water and sun and feed the tuber, and if you cut them off, there is no food going in and eventually the tuber will just die back.
We had iris that didn't bloom (maybe one or two would) but this was because the iris bulbs or tubers were VERY over crowded & needed to be thinned out... Are yours over crowded?
I have tons of iris and I actually use the weedeater to take them down in the summer. Allow the leaves to stay a while after they bloom so they will get good "energy" to the tubers. The most improtant part of good blooming iris is that the tubers are exposed, I also live in TN so our weather is not so harsh. I always make sure that they are not too tight ( I actually just pull some out like carrots) then make sure that the tubers are not covered.
I love iris !!
You may have them planted too deep.
Just barely put the risome in the soil......if there are those little "leg-like" pieces sticking out, put soil over those too. Leave the largest part of the risome just sitting on top of the soil.
They need those "green" tops ( leaves) to provide food for the risome after the bloom.This provides the food for next years blooms. By cutting those off, you won't get blooms next year.
Most folks cut the tall green leaves into a ^ shape, a Fan shape, or inverted V , in late July or August. Just use plain ole scissors to trim the leaves.This tidies up your flower bed. Yet there is enough green tops to provide the food necessary for next years blooms.
After enjoying the blooms, cut off the tall stems that the blooms were on...try not to scalp it...leave it as long as the leaves are tall.
Try not to allow the iris to send up a large round "pod" looking thing on the stem following the blooming. This is called "going to seed." And it will take a lot of the nutrients from the mother plant.
When it happened to us, it was Iris Borers - a white grub that eats and destroys everything. We had to dig them up, destroy the borers we could find, sprinkle campfire ashes into the dirt before replanting them.
I loosely braid my iris leaves and allow them to remain until they've done their job of storing energy for next season's blooms. I tie the ends off with strips made from leaf material. I do a few each day so it's not like I'm out there braiding leaves all day.
Irisis are like tulips and daffodils and most bulb or tubular plants. They need the leaves to feed off of for next year's blooms. After they are done blooming just leave them alone for a month or 2 till they start looking dry,then cut them down with scissors to about 3 inches above the ground and they will do fine the next year. Also about every 3-4 years they should be seperated and thinned out. Good luck
Just a note: Iris is toxic, so be careful what animals you feed those grass clippings to.
My Dad ALWAYS mowed down the Irises. We would have to separate them every now and then. Then they wouldn't bloom too much the first year, but the second year they'd be fine. 45 years later I have some of those Irises from my parents house planted in my yard. Can't kill them!
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
As you may know I'm starting a new iris bed in "The Path Garden". I saved this picture a few years ago and can't remember where I got it. Does anyone have this iris or know the name? I would love to have it added to the garden for next year. Thanks for any help ThriftyFun's family can provide.
By Vi Johnson from Moorpark, CA
Hill House Nursery calls it "Consummation". See www.hillhousenursery.com/
I don't know but I'd love to have some of the bulbs! Beautiful!
Thanks "straightace" I emailed them in the UK. I 'll let everyone know what I find out. GG Vi
Hi Everyone , Here is the reply I got .
I'm sorry but we don't have this iris. I think you may be confusing us with Hillview nursery: www.hillviewhardyplants.com/
I'll check Dave's Garden. Hope this info helps others too. GG Vi
I found something very similar to your photo though not exact, see it here: www.waysidegardens.com/
Hardiness Zone: 4a
Judi from Elgin, Oregon
Your assessment of the situation is probably right on the money. Irises grow in clumps. As they grow, they start to get crowded and their productivity declines. Dividing them every 2-3 years will easily solve this problem.
To divide your irises in the fall, cut the fans (leaves) back to 3 to 4 inches in length and use a sharp spade or shovel to separate them from each other so you can lift them out of the ground. When replanting, make sure you pick a sunny spot and that you plant the rhizomes so that the tops are exposed at the surface of the soil, or only slightly covered with soil. Water them in well.
Other factors that can affect how well your irises flower include the following:
Ellen
Hi,
Iris do not like to be crowded, so dividing them is probably a good idea (not sure of timing for this myself). I do know that while the roots need to be deep, the rhizome needs to be near the surface. Below is a link that you might find useful for growing/planting iris.
Good luck!
Joyce
I also think that they may just be over-crowded. I also had a problem one time with white grubs eating the rhizomes, it weakens the plant and it won't bloom. I thinned them out, threw away any with grubs in them, or any soft rhizomes, and replanted them. Because they don't like to be set deep in the soil, they fall over a lot if there is too much foliage. I trimmed the green foliage back a little so that the plants would sit straight. They didn't all bloom the next year, but the following year they were great! Best wishes to you and happy gardening, Paula
I got some from my daughter 3 years ago and this year is the first time they bloomed. I was told by a master gardener that they must have 3-5 or 5-7 leaves before they will bloom. Don't give up on them. They will surprise you.
Most Iris beds bloom well only every other year, because once a Rhizome has bloomed, it makes an offshoot that takes another year to bloom.
When one plants a bed, they likely start with all similar sized Rhizomes, thus, there are no offshoots
to bloom well the next year, taking a year to set the blooms. I suggest planting younger with the old, or
dividing the Rhizomes more often, OR accepting the
fact that you'll likely only get more pretty blooms every other year.
In Texas, they take no care, preferring ordinary clay loam and a little mulch mixed in, less water, and nothing much other than removal of deal leaves, and dividing when over crowded. If any of the bases look holey, they likely have bugs and are the previous blooming plant making way for the offshoot to grow, also providing nutrients for it.
I have several dwarf varieties, and tall varieties, single colors, and bi-color and tricolors of about five or six variety colors in all, I forgot which.
One year, years ago, I drove the entire city looking for good varieties of Iris to request a start from the owner, all of whom were willing to share. I am the most pleased with the bi-color of the most brilliant yellow edged in white; then the tri-color, of course, in shades of apricot and pink. One I bought is nearly black, but has not bloomed nor multiplied as profusely because it is being overshadowed by a Boxwood and needs to be moved in the Fall. The plain whites are my least favorite, but the pale and dark lavenders are very fragrant.
Mine bloom for about three weeks a year, which I remove as each separate bloom fades, to encourage
it to continue making buds and blooming.
Hope this helps. Good luck and God bless. : )
Dividing them and when you replant, dig the hole and put a handful or so of Milorganite in the hole before the plant and you will be surprised how they bloom the next year! Also, don't plant them deep. They like to be just under the soil.
As Joyce said, the rhizomes need to be close to the surface...even showing a little. Most people have a tendency to plant too deep.
I have bearded iris in a raised bed. The last two years, I find as the iris bud comes up nice and tall, something is clipping the stem, snapping it off with a nice clean cut. I find the blossom on the ground. Are birds doing this? How can I prevent this from happening. Last year, I lost about half my blossoms this way.
Hardiness Zone: 5a
By Gary from Syracuse, NY
Today I found one of my stems just as you described, had some last year as well. I googled and all I could find that fit was a gopher, but I think it is an insect of some kind. I see no other signs of a gopher. An Iris borer was mentioned in the article I read but that didn't seem to fit either. Does anyone else have this problem, and what did you do about it?
Most likely it is an animal of some sort not birds. Make a cover using chicken wire
I don't know about iris blooms but I do know that baby deer used to bite off the blooms of my vegetable plants. They didn't eat them, just bit the blooms off and dropped them. Little rascals!!!
I have problems with squirrels in the apartment complex that I live in. They dig the dirt out of my flower pots and eat the roots. I really wish it wasn't against the law to shoot the little critters in town. But a neighbor guy got in trouble a couple years ago for shooting them with a pellet gun.
Any suggestions on best way to grow irises and when, or if, you should cut them?
If you are really serious about growing Iris, you need to do a lot of research. Even though they're easy to grow, all the best 'How To's' could fill a small book.
I will tell you this: They need full sun all day. They need to be kept weed free. The upper half of the rhizome needs to be exposed to the hot, baking sun. I never cut the foliage on mine unless I'm transplanting them.
There is an Iris farm near where I live. I went into a dream state every time I visited the place. Acres of Iris. The lady owner told me she had over 5,000 different Iris, and that was over twenty years, ago. She keeps adding more all the time.
She had the healthiest, most beautiful Iris I've ever seen. They were grown in fields of hard red clay. She told me if she saw signs of disease, she drenched the plants in pure Clorox. I said, 'Doesn't the Clorox burn the plants'? She said, 'no'. I asked her what she fed them. She said 10-10-10.
This iris has done nothing for 6 months. It has started to grow 5 shoots a couple of weeks ago. 3 out to the sides and one is growing up. They are about 1/4 inch around and have a pointed tip.
By Bob g. from Toledo, OH
It depends on if the iris was divided. Divided iris will not bloom the first year after transplant. But the second year you'll be rewarded with beautiful flowers!
What do I feed Irises? I've had these irises since we bought the house in 2002. I've divided them and replanted them in many locations. I was told to feed them Bone Meal in the fall (something I haven't done yet). Is this good for them and if so where do I get the bone meal? The color has faded over the years in the leaves. I think that's due to improper feeding, am I correct? I also want to re-do the flower bed where they are now. Can I dig them up now, fix the bed and replant them now?
Hardiness Zone: 8b
By Marlene from Tonopah, NV
Cut off dead blossoms and dead bloom stalks when the iris has stopped blossoming, but don't cut back the leaves until they begin to turn brown in the fall. The leaves are needed to produce next year's blooms. When you do cut, leave a fan shape about six inches long. Feed your irises a teaspoon of bone meal every fall and when you replant. You can feed again a month before they usually bloom if you like, but they are quite tolerant of just one feeding.get bone meal from Lowe's or where flowers are sold,I sug to move them after they bloom,for more info search for"how to grow irises",good luck.
My iris last bloomed 6 mo. ago. I have been watering it and 2 weeks ago it started to grow tubers. 4 at the sides of the leaf base and one going straight up. Which of these if any might produce a bloom?
Please help, this was a trash can rescue last fall.
By Bob from Toledo, OH
While the others are still not ready on that plant can I cut back just the top bloom and give it away?
By Jeff
Should the ever-blooming iris be cut back at the same time as regular iris? If not, when should they be cut back?
Hardiness Zone: 7a
By Cathy from Williamsburg, VA
ThriftyFun is one of the longest running frugal living communities on the Internet. These are archives of older discussions.
"Escape from Iris Island"! The flowers came up around our new airplane yard sculpture last spring without any real planning.
This is a photo of my beautiful iris that I have planted in a container. I wasn't sure what color it was until it bloomed. It sure turned out pretty!
My dwarf iris has finished blooming for the summer. The plant is a big sprawling mess. Can I cut it back now (June 12)?
What will happen to my irises if I cut them way back, leaves and all, now that they are done blooming?
