Part of the
You Can Learn Landscaping and Gardening series.
By Ken Brown
Editor, YouCanLearnSeries.com
Updated: October 29, 2005
The Bearded Iris is a spring bloomer, that grows up to four feet tall
with a spread of as much as two feet. Though the iris blooms in early spring
like bulb plants, most grow from rhizome systems. There are some that grow from
bulbs. You can get a wide variety of colors: blue, violet, yellow, purple, red,
white and pink.
The Bearded Iris is easy to maintain with few pests. There is one pest, the
iris borer, that will burrow into the rhizome system and destroy the rhizomes.
This pest is the larva of the night-flying moth. You can control it with a
spring time application to the leaves of Cygon or Orthene.
This flower is easy to grow, requiring little care. They will reward you with
spring and early summer beauty. Be sure and allow for good drainage to prevent
rhizome rotting.
To get that all year flower garden, plant the Iris in with
Coneflowers, Threadleaf Coreopsis,
Russian Sage, Daylilies, and other late bloomers. Add some Purple Fountain
Grass for all year beauty.
You can divide this plant during the midsummer. Just lift a clump, remove any
rhizomes that look bad, and then separate into groups containing leaves, some
rhizomes and feeder roots.
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