Tips > Spencer's Tips Tip: All Building A New Lawn General Lawn Aerating Lawn Bugs & Weeds Lawn Construction Overview Lawn Dethatcing Lawn Fertilizing Lawn Liming Lawn Maintenance Overview Lawn Mowing Lawn Overseeding Lawn Soil Test Our Secret to Success Refurbishing Your Lawn Roses Spencer's Tips Tomato Varieties Fact Sheet #: #3 Iris My Iris are in bloom at the moment. They usually last about 2 weeks or so, depending on the weather. Jim and I made the bed over 10 years ago. I remember him splitting the rhizomes with an axe. My bearded Iris are yellow with purple falls. The Bearded Iris has large flowers, thick rhizomes that produce flat, sword-like leaves. Most Iris don’t need staking, they stand upright. Bearded Iris are described in terms of standards, falls and beards. The falls are the 3 drooping petals. The standards are the 3 upright petals. The beards are the fuzzy portion on the center of the falls. When planting, leave the rhizome just barely exposed. Deep planting retards blooming and results in rot. Plant in sun in well drained soil. Bearded Iris don’t like wet spots where snow melts in the spring. They will rot. You should add bone meal to encourage blooms. They need to be divided every 4 years or so. It can be done in late summer after blooming or in early spring. Use a shovel to cut through the root system or an axe. Plant the rhizome just barely exposed with about 6” of leaves. Make sure the rhizome is firm. Edith Wolford is a huge, bearded Iris. It has heavily ruffled blue and yellow flowers. It is very showy. Blooms late spring-early summer. It is fragrant. Immortality is another bearded Iris that is pure white. We have one planted in the front display garden at Spencer’s. It almost shines in the dark, very glowing and showy. Blooms mid spring and is one of the best re-bloomers. Grows 29” tall in full sun. Deer won’t eat them and hummingbirds are attracted to Iris. They come in many colors: purple, yellow, blue, white, and red. I cut the spent blooms off and leave the leaves for the summer. In the fall, I tidy up the beds and cut the leaves down to the ground for the winter. Siberian Iris have delicate looking flowers on narrow and grassy foliage. It is very hardy. They grow 18-48” tall in clumps. They prefer sun to part shade in well-drained soil. Siberian Iris will tolerate wet conditions well. They are elegant beardless flowers, often blue. They tower above the foliage. They often re-bloom in the fall. The leaves stay attractive throughout the growing season. Sweet Iris, or Pallida is planted by the pond at the store. It has a variegated foliage, green and yellow leaves with blue flowers. It is considered an old fashioned Iris. Grows 2-4 ‘ tall. Yellow flag Iris likes moist soil or standing water. It has broad sword-like leaves with dense clumps of plants. The flower is yellow with a deeper yellow splash on the falls. The foliage is grayish-green. Blooms late spring to early summer. Farewell from Spencer’s Advice Product: All Building A New Lawn General Lawn Aerating Lawn Bugs & Weeds Lawn Construction Overview Lawn Dethatcing Lawn Fertilizing Lawn Liming Lawn Maintenance Overview Lawn Mowing Lawn Overseeding Lawn Soil Test Our Secret to Success Refurbishing Your Lawn Roses Spencer's Tips Tomato Varieties Pond In Summer Pond In Fall Rock Garden 5 Ohio Road, Shelburne, Nova Scotia, B0T 1W0 Tel: 1-877-870-3055 | 902-875-3055 | Fax: 902-875-3023 info@novascotiagardening.com