Bearded Iris Raised Beds

Bearded Iris Bed #1

 This week I added a layer of leaf compost to the bearded iris raised beds.  I covered the soil surface, except on and adjacent to the rhizomes.  I want to keep the rhizomes exposed.

This is the last thing needed for them this winter, other than minor puttering to remove dead leaves.  They look pretty sad with the dying leaves.  I think they are like that every year.

Bearded Iris Bed #2

Bearded Iris Bed #3

 The anemones that I planted last winter at the front of Bed #1 are growing now.  That surprised me.  I thought they might be dead.

There are a couple of plants to remove from Bed #1 but no hurry.  Those are a trailing rosemary, a couple of Laburnum cuttings, and some ginkgo seedlings.

Top L-R: Kissed by the Sun, California Blue, Immortality.  Bottom L-R:  American Classic, Red Dirt Road, Accent.

Iris germanica, with mushrooms.

New start of Owyhee Desert

 Bed # 2 is pretty much as I want it.

Bed # 3 has some reserved spaces for rhizomes from Old House Gardens, to arrive in April.  At the left are Egyptian Walking Onions.  I expected to pull those as scallions, but deer ate them.  The remainder have a chicken wire cover.

The established cluster od American Classic, Kissed by the Sun, Accent, Immortality, and Edith Wolford all survived their move from the Vancouver yard.  They should have good displays next year.

The Iris germanica clump, planted this spring as a new rhizome, has a mushroom companion.  I don't know if that is commensual or infecting.  It could be inoculum from the filler soil, or from the mycorrhizal inoculant.  The iris looks OK so I am leaving it alone.

Clump of Cherry Garden

New start of "Los Angeles"

Expanding clump of "Helen Collingwood"

New start of "Alcazar"

They new rhizomes, planted late summer, all look OK.  For reference, this is Owyhee Desert, which looks settled in and is making increase.

The Cherry Garden clumps also survived their moved from Vancouver and appear to have increased.  Last year's TLC got them growing rapidly.  They might look better in a different location.  I have 4 clusters of those.

Los Angeles did not appear to grow as fast as some of the others, but I think this rhizome, from "Historic Iris Preservation Society" is settled in.

Helen Collingwood grew one new rhizome last year.  This year it has increase of 3.  It is settled in and the rhizome looks robust.  It looks promising for bloom next Spring.

The last one, Alcazar, from Historic Iris Preservation Society this summer, looks settled in.  It has increase of 4 new buds to develop into rhizomes.  I'm curious about whether it will bloom next Spring. 

Not much else to do with the bearded irises now.  Hard to just watch them in dormancy, but that's the season.