They must replace their food supply. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. It isn't difficult to do, but it is important to do it at the right time of year to ensure that the iris benefits most from the division. She was Features Copy Desk chief before becoming the first full-time garden editor for the paper in 1988. Most are about 3 feet long. My Bearded Iris has not been divided for many years. Botanically its known as Dietes bicolor. The African iris is white in color with small yellow and blue markings in the center of the flower. My Irises did not flower this year, and I have a patch where nothing grew. Be sure to discard old and/or unhealthy rhizomes. This article has been viewed 210,633 times. Learn more... Bearded irises tend to become crowded every two to three years and cease to produce good blooms. This is a very low maintenance plant that thrives on neglect.Each flower last only a day, but is quickly replaced by another. The plant is also referred to as a “Fortnight Lily” – because of their two-week blooming cycle. Can I divide my bearded iris the first week of October in Maine? Read on to find out. The soil is too hard to dig and divide. Step-by-step process, along with pictures, made it very clear. Division differs slightly. She writes a weekly garden Q&A and feature stories. Told me everything I needed to know to divide my irises. Pamela McGeorge and Alison Nicoll, Irises, p. 23, (2001), ISBN 1-86953-470-0 Steps for Dividing Iris Plants. ", http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/iris/2002045002020707.html, consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow, Choose firm rhizomes that have both roots and a leaf fan. Check for plump, white roots, then lift a clump and separate sections with one leaf fan. A: Yes, you can cut the old/brown foliage back. If possible, lift the whole mass out whole, but if you are unable to do this, carefully break the clump into smaller parts and lift these out. The most important aspect of transplanting iris is timing. Add a 2-inch layer of organic mulch around the plant. African Iris (Dietes vegeta) – aka “Butterfly Iris” – is probably the best known in South Florida landscapes. Tie thin strips of colored rags on the bud stalks while they are in bloom in order to identify the colors of mixed patches during division. 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", "I never knew this and you provided the information I needed! This plant has iris-like flowers that are on perennial clumps of narrow bright green leaves. ", "This article took away my fear of doing something about my overgrown iris beds. ", "It was very clear on the directions on how to divide bearded irises. Wait until flowering is over before dividing the iris clump, discarding any old, woody rhizomes and replanting only young, healthy plants into freshly-prepared soil. References Start the mulch a few inches away from the African iris’s base and extend it out toward its drip line. X Its sepals are bright white with a yellow signal. b) Dietes will only bloom from established flowering stalks, so when dividing and re-planting it's wise to keep the established flowering stalks and extensions intact. Remember that the leaves feed the rhizomes, so it may be best to leave some amount of foliage intact. This article has been viewed 210,633 times. The African iris belongs to a family of 300 species which is a large family, I have worked with this plant over the years and have always been impressed with its beauty. For moderate crowding, it is relatively easy to pluck many individual shoots without disturbing remaining shoots. iris | Dividing African Irises. I also found it difficult to divide an established African iris (Dietes bicolor). "I never knew the proper time of the year to split the irises, so this really helped with that. ", "When to divide them was helpful. A cousin to bearded iris, Siberian iris and the rest of the iris flower clan, African iris is a native of South Africa. Even though these beautiful flowers are short lived, they can still be planted in … After nine months of waiting, Houston-area hospitals are preparing. | Mon, 20 Jan 2003 18:33:00. African iris Bruce Bennett/For the Chronicle. Lily of the Nile and African iris do not need dividing often, but when they do, it can be a major chore. Only dig up an iris plant when it is dormant. ", others. In common parlance, African iris is also called fortnight lily, yellow fortnight lily and butterfly flag. Yes. Tip While African Irises are not particularly susceptible to various plant diseases, sterilizing pruning shears in a 1-10 bleach/water solution after pruning ensures that diseases will not be transferred from plant to plant. My irises have gotten too big for the bed I planted them in, so this "how to" totally helped me with my thinning and transplanting. My garden runs late. Thank you. ", already prepared the new site with the proper soil. A native of Moultrie, Ga., she graduated from Queens University of Charlotte, formerly Queens College. One of the best all-purpose plants for home landscapes, it stands up to heat, drought and neglect. aturating the soil the day before digging helped a little, but it did take muscle. I love the iris plant because of the bloom which is a mixture of yellow and purple. 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A patch where nothing grew, made it very clear on the ground with a contribution wikihow., 2017 - this petite beauty is a very low maintenance plant that thrives on neglect.Each last. People told us that this article received 18 testimonials and 98 % of told...
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