What you need to do with irises (before winter). I perform 2 procedures - they bloom massively and brightly
Fiery fireworks, fellow flower growers!
Do you want to admire the pompous beauty of your favorite irises? Pay a little attention to caring for a beautiful flower, and be sure - before winter. Rhizome irises need a safe rest during the cold season.
Then by spring (and it will come earlier than it seems now) the plants will be healthy and ready to immediately tune in to lush flowering. And, on the contrary: the lack of care on the part of your beloved owner will make a continuous stress out of wintering, and the next season the iris will begin with a waste of energy on recovery.
What to do with irises in autumn is strongly discouraged
Sometimes the grower's hyper-care turns into a misfortune for the gardeners. It is good if excessive manipulation simply does not do harm. Indeed, sometimes the love for irises and the desire to make them "better" only harms the plant.
Outside the window, comrades, - the beginning of October. So, I advise you to remove the following manipulations with irises in the garden from the planning meeting agenda:
- Fertilization with mineral, organic and folk remedies. Iris is now supposed to get ready for bed and slow down all life processes. Generous doping can force the plant at the very least, but continue to develop. And the poor iris will be caught off guard by the frosts. Yes, the cold always comes so unexpectedly (housing and communal services workers know best about this)!
- Loosening the earth. The good intention to make the soil airy loses its relevance after detailed consideration. After all, the underground part of rhizome irises literally lies on the surface. If the gardener does not have the skills of jewelry loosening by millimeters, then it is better to refuse the idea. Otherwise, the damaged rhizome will not heal to subzero temperatures and will be exposed to rot.
- A dense winter shelter. Iris is definitely not the kind of plant that trembles before the Russian cold. Rhizome varieties survive perfectly the Siberian winter with a temperature of -45 ° C (if the condition is met, which I will discuss below). Iris would rather rot under cover than freeze under the snow.
And now - about the most delicious. I tell you what I do with irises at the dacha in the fall, before winter. 2 manipulations - and the plants first wake up healthy, and then they bloom magnificently in the best saturated shades of their color range.
Pruning iris is a must
Irises have long and dense leaves that resemble green feathers. They need to be cut before winter for 3 reasons:
- look unattractive;
- hard and fibrous, the leaves may not rot over the winter, which will add work in the spring garden;
- the most important thing is springboards for water: from the sky - right into the heart of the flower, closer to the rhizome.
The iris is pruned when the first frost begins and the foliage is caught in the frost. Previously, it is not recommended to do a haircut
To prevent the bottom of the iris from suffering from excess moisture, the leaves are pruned with sharp scissors or pruning shears to 10-15 cm.
It is advisable to set the shape of a "fan" or "roof of a country house": this way the probability of rhizome decay due to water collection will be minimal. And the remaining stumps will collect snow around them - the only shelter that the iris needs. Natural and reliable!
How to mulch iris correctly and why it is so necessary
The main problem in growing irises is the exposure of the rhizome. You, comrades, probably also noticed this feature of the flower. It strives to jump to the surface, and the situation is aggravated by soil erosion by rain and watering. A bare rhizome is an easy target for frost.
Therefore, the base of the iris for the winter must be covered with earth. To increase soil fertility, you can use thoroughly "infused" humus and loose compost. Iris will love it!