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#83399 Jul 6th, 2007 at 11:55 AM
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Clare Offline OP
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Hi, I'm a learning gardener! I bought a house from an older lady who has LOTS of shrubs and perennials. She has a lot of iris which are pretty in the spring, but now the leaves are huge and kind of take over the beds. Can I cut them down or should I just leave them?

Clare #83401 Jul 6th, 2007 at 12:41 PM
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It's better to leave them. They are gaining energy from the sun and feeding the tuber (root) for next years blooms.


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Wrennie #83402 Jul 6th, 2007 at 12:42 PM
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Welcome to the forum by the way!! grin


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Wrennie #83408 Jul 6th, 2007 at 01:04 PM
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Hello clare

If, as it seems, your irises are taking over a particular spot and getting a bit overcrowded, the other thing that you might like to think about is dividing them. You do this by digging them up and cutting the newer bits of the rhizome away from the old bits (you replant the new bits and chuck out the old bits). Its best to do this a couple of months after they've flowered.

You can get a lot more detailed advice direct from the American Iris Society (AIS) website: www.irises.org/index.htm

starfish #83446 Jul 6th, 2007 at 05:42 PM
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Welcome Clare! You could divide them, and can easily have a larger patch of irises! From what I know, all perennials (like hyacinths, tulips, irises, etc...) you should let the leavs die off naturally so that they can continue providing nutrients to the rhizome/tuber/corm, etc.


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kennyso #83456 Jul 6th, 2007 at 06:16 PM
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Hi, Clare. I agree--if your plants have outgrown their space, you can divide them easily. But also, I have cut some off of my iris leaves when they get really gross-looking. When they get brown on the tips, and start dying, I'll cut them off right under the brown part. I've even cut them at an angle, before, so they look more natural!! This leaves enough leaf to feed the tuber, but doesn't look so bad.

I also clean mine out 2-3 times a year. Irises are self-mulching, which can make them look kind of trashy, so I pull all of the dead leaves out, and I even pull out any leaves that have brown streaks all the way down. I've also discovered diseased tubers by doing this, and saved my irises.

You probably know to dead-head your irises after they bloom. This makes the plant healthier, and it doesn't put so much energy into making seeds. When an entire stalk is finished blooming, I'll cut it off to the ground.

I agree that they can kind of take over the landscape. But if you can clean them out and trim them a little, you'll enjoy them longer.


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gardenermom #84010 Jul 7th, 2007 at 10:38 AM
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When they do die, you can cut the leaves back in a fan shape so they will be ready to bloom next year. If you want to transplant them or thin them, the best time to do so is after they die back. This is when they are dormant. I am acutally thinking of moving mine after they are dormant this year because mine don't get enough sun where they are now.

manderlyh #84053 Jul 7th, 2007 at 12:14 PM
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always leave the greens on the bulbs/rhyzomes after the flowers have come and gone. leaving the greens on is what feeds the bulb for the following year. you can cut off the flower stalk after the flower is spent.

iris are best split/transplanted or just transplanted in the early spring or in the fall. i prefer fall because it's easier to position the rhyzome so that it will grow in the direction you want because you can see the leaves and what direction they are growing in.

if you want to neaten things up a bit, you can cut the leaves back a bit - say a third off the ends. no more than that tho, or the bulb won't get enough nutrition to be able to bloom the following year.


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Joclyn #86845 Jul 10th, 2007 at 12:11 PM
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How far apart do you guys think irises should be? I have a very small bed with about thirty plants! I think I need to divide them at the end of this year.

manderlyh #86862 Jul 10th, 2007 at 12:18 PM
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Bulbs are typically divided every 3 years. And about 6 inches apart should be fine unless you want to go longer between divisions lol.


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