Irises seed planting and outdoor care

Irises are a popular garden crop with spectacular flowering and unpretentious nature. Many gardeners are interested in planting and caring for irises in the open field. Velvet multicolored irises are a perennial plant that serves as a real decoration for a flower garden or flower bed.

Irises - description and features of culture

Irises are short perennials of the rhizome genus. Translated from Greek, the word Iris means rainbow. Indeed, more than 700 types of irises are known, differing in size, shape, structure and color of the flower. Outwardly, the iris flower stalk is similar to an orchid, the color of the petals is very diverse - from white and pale to rich and bright. In some varieties, the peduncle is painted with two, three or more flowers, and a peculiar pattern is applied to the lower petals.

The beginning of flowering of irises is May and June, the lush flowering can continue until the end of June. In autumn, iris can bloom again - in August and September.

The culture has an extensive geography around the world, with some varieties found in the harsh climate of the Northern Hemisphere. In nature, there are rhizome and bulbous irises, which outwardly are absolutely similar to each other. Rhizome irises are stable and unpretentious, winter well and are not afraid of cold weather. Bulbous varieties require a little more care and attention. The wild flower iris has long been loved by flower growers and has become an urban flower. You should learn everything about the care and planting of irises in open ground.

Rules for planting irises in open ground

Rhizome irises prefer a well-lit area where they will bloom beautifully for a long time. For the free spread of the roots, irises need space - at least half a meter from each other. All species love loose, nutrient-rich and oily soil. Planting irises in the spring in the ground is carried out after the compost and potassium-phosphorus fertilizers have been introduced. It is not recommended to apply manure.

Soil moisture for each variety needs its own:

• bearded iris is best planted in a fan on the slopes so that there is a good outflow of rain and melt water;
• Siberian iris and marsh iris are best grown where it is always damp - near water bodies and in partial shade.

The area for irises is dug up, treated with fungicides against harmful insects, and herbicides to reduce weed growth. For rhizome irises, a neutral soil is preferred. If the soil is acidic, you should mix it with ash, lime or chalk. When planting, the upper bud remains on the surface of the soil, it is not buried.

Rhizome varieties - how to plant irises in spring:

1. A hole is dug under the root, in the center of which a small mound is poured.
2. The central root should be placed on a mound, and the lateral roots should be distributed to the sides.
3. The main rhizome is sprinkled with earth, a layer of sand is applied on top, the earth is slightly compacted.
4. The roots should not be buried too deep, they should be located close to the soil surface.
5. Let the central kidney remain free of the earth - above its surface.

Experienced flower growers recommend planting irises in the open ground in spring and summer. During the warm season, the plants have time to fully root in the soil, due to which they winter without loss and begin to bloom the next year.

Bulbous irises - planting and care in the open field:

1. The bulbs are planted in early spring or autumn before frost.
2. The soil temperature for planting must be at least 10 °, otherwise the bulbs may freeze.
3. A shallow trench is dug, the bulbs go deeper into the trench by 3-4 cm, no more.
4. The total planting depth should be about 10-12 cm.
5. The excavated soil is mixed with garden soil for nutrition, river sand and crushed coal for drainage, with double superphosphate for growth.
6. The prepared grooves are disinfected by spilling with a solution of potassium permanganate, and a growth stimulator to strengthen the roots.
7. Iris bulbs are planted sprout up, not too deep, at a sufficient distance from each other - 15-20 cm.
8. The soil is poured on top, which should be lightly tamped so that the bulbs do not crawl out to the surface.
9. Re-watering is necessary only after 3-4 days.

Excessive root deepening harms the growth and development of irises, while the soil should not be heavy. For loosening, compost, peat and coarse sand are added to the soil.

Small-bulbous varieties of irises are not demanding on moisture. They are buried three times the height of the bulb, and their flowering begins next spring.

Iris care - basics and secrets

According to experienced flower growers, irises are strong and viable plants that grow and bloom well without fertilization. However, in the third year of life, it is recommended to pamper the flower with a step-by-step complex feeding - in the spring, during the budding period and after flowering. In response to care, the plant will become stronger and stronger, it will grow faster and bloom more abundantly.

Irises - care in spring:

• top dressing in a ratio of 2: 1: 1 - nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium;
• watering depending on the surrounding weather conditions.

During the budding period, fertilizing should be carried out at a ratio of 3: 1: 3 - nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium. In this case, watering and spraying are carried out as needed. A month after the end of flowering, it is recommended to apply top dressing in a 1: 1 ratio - phosphorus plus potassium. In the autumn, before wintering, dry mineral fertilizer should be applied in a tablespoon, scattering it under each root of the plant.

Irises should be watered at the root when the soil around the bush is completely dry. After planting, the plant is watered only three days later.

How to feed irises in spring:

• if a lack of minerals is noticed, then mineral dressing should be applied personally for each bush;
• in early spring, a complex nitrogen-potassium-phosphorus fertilizer for flowers is useful for a plant.

Prevention of diseases and pests includes sanitary pruning of dead plant parts, timely removal of wilted flower stalks, regular spraying and shower, cleaning the beds from fallen leaves. In the open field, the planting of irises is weeded by hand, the soil is loosened with care and watered as needed. Before winter, the rhizomes are sprinkled with earth and covered, since they are located close to the surface itself and can freeze.

How and when to transplant irises

Irises can be planted in three ways - rhizomes, shoots and grown from seeds. Getting plants from seeds is the longest and most difficult way. In practice, it is much easier and faster to grow flowers by dividing the bush and branches. At the same time, plants grown from rhizomes will bloom the next year, and seed plantings will have to wait another 2-3 years.

How and when to transplant irises:

• the best time for transplanting is early spring, that is, March-April, before flowering;
• flowers are propagated by dividing rhizomes and sprouts.

Transplanting irises in spring to another place is carried out using only healthy and strong plants that will take root quickly and without problems. The rhizomes are removed from the ground and divided into parts so that each individual root rosette has one leaf bud. Excess foliage should be trimmed. Before planting, the roots are dipped in a potassium permanganate solution for disinfection for several minutes. Dried rhizomes are planted in shallow trenches or small planting holes at a distance of 50-60 cm from each other.

When propagating vegetatively, the iris should bloom at least once. After that, until the moment of budding, young shoots can be taken from it. New plants should be rooted from March to May in a shaded place, creating greenhouse conditions. Full rooting can be observed after 2-3 weeks.

Irises can be grown from seeds. In autumn, seeds are sown in a pot with a sandy substrate, covered with plastic or glass. By spring, the seeds will sprout, they are dived and planted in open ground. When to plant irises outdoors in spring? The optimal time for planting in the ground is early spring, the month of March and April. By this time, young plantings have already grown up enough, they will be able to quickly and fully take root in the ground.

Irises in landscape design

The high decorative qualities of irises allow them to be planted in flower beds and mixborders, along fences, in flower beds and rockeries. The ideal place for them is on a hill, where there is no stagnation of moisture, and there is no close adhesion of groundwater. There are short and tall types of irises. Tall plants are usually tied up so that they do not break and hold the bud well. Dwarf irises grow in a solid wall and require periodic pruning and watering in dry weather.

Irises in landscape design photo:

Knowing the rules of planting and caring for irises in the open field will make it easy and simple to grow these plants in your garden plot. When you see an iris, you do not want to pick it at all, you want to admire it endlessly, inhaling the delicate and delicate aroma of a flower.

Such different irises on the site - video

Iris (Iris, Petushki) is a perennial plant from the rhizome genus. Irises can be found in almost every vegetable garden, garden and park. There are more than 700 species, which are characterized by a variety of shapes and colors.

For this reason, the people called this flower rainbow. They say that since ancient times the iris was named after the goddess of the rainbow Iris. Outwardly, iris flowers are very similar to orchids and have the same rich spectrum of shades.

Varieties and types

Bearded iris gained wide popularity due to the presence of shaggy hairs on the petals. This type of irises comes in different sizes (dwarf, tall, dining room and others).

An important point when growing is that you need to plant this type of iris on the sand. To do this, sand is poured onto the bottom of the prepared hole (in a small layer) and then spread, carefully distributing the rhizome. Landing should not be deep.

Siberian iris grows up to 80 cm high, while having flowers up to 10 cm, of various colors. The natural color of this species has many shades from blue to dark purple.

As for some hybrid varieties, there are:

• white (Snow Queen),

• pink (Imperial opal),

• yellow with white edging (Batts & Suga).

With all this variety, there is a significant disadvantage of this type - there is no aroma at all.

Japanese iris (its other name xiphoid) has large flowers (about 25 cm in diameter), which are most similar to orchid flowers.

Iris Evansia - one of the largest species (about one meter in height), drought and frost resistant. The flowers are lacy, have a bright yellow center and a white (dark purple, blue-purple and others) border.

Iris marsh The clear difference from other species is the fact that this iris only grows in moist soil.For this reason, it is most often used to decorate water bodies.

Dwarf iris - reaches only 15 cm in height, has wide leaves and yellow or purple flowers.

Dutch irises (xyphilum) Is a hybrid variety, first bred in Holland. They grow to a height of no more than 50-60 cm. Flowers have different shades of petals: white, yellow, orange, blue and purple.

Winter-hardy, but in severe winters requires additional shelter. Often this type of irises is used for cutting, forming bouquets.

Iris spuria - a very interesting flower, which in translation from Latin "spuria" means "false". Received its name for the external similarity with the Dutch irises.

The main advantage is that the flowering period is longer (several weeks). The period of "life" of one flower is a week.

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Iris planting and care in the open field

Irises are light-loving plants, therefore, the key to a long and variegated flowering is their location in a well-lit area.

During planting, it is worth considering the fact that irises are able to move. So in one year they can move away from their original location by several centimeters. Therefore, the planting is carried out not in a standard way (in a row), but in a fan of leaves along the row. Planting conditions for each species are different.

So, for example, it is worth planting bearded irises on that piece of land where good illumination is observed in the first half of the day, it is better if it is a slope or a hill (for the outflow of melt water) and the presence of drainage. As for marsh and Siberian irises, they are the opposite. they like the soil to be constantly moist.

But at the same time, all species love rich soil, therefore, if necessary, in the spring, before planting, compost is applied (do not use manure) and potash-phosphorus fertilizers. If the soil is acidic, you can add some chalk or wood ash. And be sure, before planting, it is necessary to treat the area with herbicides and moisten it with a fungicide (for disinfection).

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Watering irises

It is worth watering the plant only after the soil around the bush has completely dried. If there is a possibility that groundwater flows close to the surface, then it is worth taking care of drainage in advance.

The first watering is carried out immediately after planting, and the next one - not earlier than three days later.

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Top dressing of irises in spring

For lush flowering and good growth, irises, like all plants, need fertilizing and fertilization. However, you should not use manure, the irises will start to hurt from it.

For feeding, you should use complex mineral fertilizers containing phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium. Scatter it around the bushes in the spring after the irises start to grow. After that, the soil should be watered to accelerate the dissolution of the granules.

Also, do not forget that an excess of fertilizers is also very harmful to plants, as well as their lack, it is better not to feed them a little, as with watering, than to overfeed. Some of the gardeners may object: why feed and tinker with irises, because they will bloom without it. But this is debatable.

For ten years of growing irises, there were periods when no fertilizing was carried out at all for about three years in a row - and the difference was very noticeable. If you use fertilizers, irises bloom more abundantly and much more magnificently, their flowers are brighter and larger, the leaves are healthy and glossy, and the flower stalks are strong enough that even in a strong wind they do not break, which does not require tying at all.

But the main thing is that the growth of such bushes occurs much faster. For these reasons, the answer to the question to feed or not is unambiguous - to feed, but at the same time wisely and in moderation. I have already worked out a feeding scheme with a complex of micro and macro elements once a season before the beginning of the flowering period. From my irises, I notice that they like it, they grow very quickly and bloom gorgeous.

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Preparing irises for winter

Due to the characteristic feature of irises, which is that their root system grows horizontally, sometimes their roots are exposed above the surface, so in winter they need to be sprinkled with additional earth and peat, otherwise they will freeze out. In the spring, this layer of soil is carefully removed.

Leaves, straw, corn stalks as a covering material, or any other material under which the irises can grow out, are categorically unsuitable for irises. It is better to use the ground for cover. Pour some handfuls of soil into the middle of the bush in order to cover the bare rhizomes.

When snow falls, it can also be used as a shelter, additionally adding it to the planting of irises. And in the spring, after the soil dries up, the excess soil should be carefully distributed around the bushes. And yet, in the matter of hiding irises for the winter period, it is impossible to give unequivocal advice for all gardeners.

Since, when growing irises in the southern regions, you can completely do without shelter for the winter, but in the east and north of Russia, some varieties simply need a preventive shelter.

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Reproduction of irises

There are three ways of reproduction of irises - by seeds, sprouts or rhizomes.

At the same time, the main difference between these methods is that the flowering of irises grown from seeds should be expected only in the second or third year, and flowers grown from the rhizome will bloom in the first year.

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Reproduction of irises by dividing the bush

When dividing a bush, only the healthiest bushes are selected. Having dug out all the rhizomes from the ground, it is necessary to thoroughly shake off all the ground in order to see each root well, then cut into small sections, so that each part has one leaf bundle. The leaves are cut in half.

After that, it is necessary to disinfect in a weak solution of potassium permanganate (dip the roots in the solution for 10-15 minutes), and dry in the sun. Plant in small holes, no deeper than 3-4 cm and at a distance of no closer than half a meter.

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Vegetative propagation of iris

For propagation by sprouts, it is necessary to wait for at least one flowering of the plant, only after that you can safely use the young shoots. At the same time, it is worth cutting them off before the buds appear.

Rooting is carried out by planting in the ground in a shaded place, creating a greenhouse. Spray if necessary. After 2-3 weeks, complete rooting can be observed.

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Iris growing from seed

After flowering, collect the dried ovaries. They can be stored in boxes, in a dark and dry place. In autumn, the prepared seeds are planted in pots with a sandy substrate and covered with glass or polyethylene (create a greenhouse). Closer to spring, the seedlings will sprout, they need to be thinned out.

Youngsters are planted only after they have grown up enough to be convenient for planting. It is worth noting that only species-specific irises can be propagated in this way, but with varietal ones, problems may arise with the preservation of maternal characteristics.

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Diseases and pests

• If the flower has been affected by any type of rot (for example, fusarium), then the affected specimen is immediately removed from the site, the hole where it was located is treated with a 2% solution of foundationol. The same drug can be used to treat the rhizome before planting, as a preventive measure.
• Known pests affecting iris are scoops, which eat away the base of the peduncles, as a result of which they turn yellow and die.
• Another of the parasites are thrips... They settle in the leaves, disrupting photosynthesis (turn brown and dry), and the buds are deformed and lose the brightness of colors. This can happen in dry summers, due to lack of moisture. Control measures are karbofos.
• Also iris is affected slugs... An easy way to deal with them is: spread wet rags or wet burdock leaves around the bushes, wait for slugs to collect on them (they use them as shelter), then collect them and destroy.

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Bacteriosis or soft rot of iris rhizomes

One of the dangerous diseases that affects irises issoft edge, bacterial, rhizome rot... The plant dies with a strong degree of infection.

The signs of this disease are leaf decay at the base of the rhizomes, while the leaves remain green and simply fall out in whole fans. The rhizomes themselves turn into a fetid muck inside. The affected bushes should be completely dug out, all damaged areas should be cut out, reaching healthy tissue, the cutting tool should be disinfected each time.

Divide the bushes, sprinkle the cuts with crushed coal, and then spread them in the sun to the top with rhizomes for one or two days, for a pretty warm. Do not be afraid that the irises will dry up. Such procedures are a way of saving sick plants. After that, the delenki that have dried up and warmed up are transplanted to a new site, and watered.

The soil on the contaminated site is disinfected with a solution of potassium permanganate, and the contaminated material is burned. With moderate damage to the rhizomes during the noticed disease, it is possible to save irises in almost one hundred percent of cases.

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Irises rust stains

In spring and summer, irises may appear on the leaves of irises.rust stains, which grow over time, causing the gradual drying of the leaves. These stains spread especially rapidly at high humidity.

For the prevention of leaf spotting, irises should be treated with fungicides, in the spring, at the very beginning of intensive plant growth, with a mandatory repeat after ten to fourteen days to consolidate the results.

And at the beginning of the flowering period, a control treatment is carried out. It should be borne in mind that drug solutions are poorly adhered to the leaves, for this reason, special adhesives should be added.

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Irises are perennial herbaceous plants that are widespread in floriculture and are loved by many florists. Plants have earned great popularity due to their undemanding conditions of maintenance and ease of care. These flowers tolerate winter cold and transplant well. With proper care of irises, they bloom for a long time and will be an excellent decoration for flower beds, flower beds and mixborders.

1 Description and popular varieties

The iris plant (iris) is a rhizome, belongs to the Iris family. From the main rhizome, filamentous or filamentous roots extend. The plant has one or more annual peduncles. The flat and thin leaves are sword-shaped and covered with a waxy coating.

Irises have large single flowers of complex shape and various colors. The flower has six perianth lobes, of which three outer ones are inverted and often painted in a different color. The upper perianth lobes are fused into a tube. Plants begin to bloom in May and continue this process until July.

The names of the most popular types and varieties of iris:

• Bearded irises get their name from the hairy hairs on the petals. Flowers of this variety can be of different sizes according to the description, there are tall, medium, border, dwarf and other varieties.
• Siberian irises are distinguished by their natural color in various shades: from blue to dark purple, but now many other shades of this species have already been bred as a result of selection work. Well-known Siberian iris of white color Snow Queen, pink high Imperial Opal, yellow iris with a white border Betts and Suga.
• Iris marsh or pseudoarion differs from other varieties of this plant in that it prefers moist soil for growth. In natural conditions, the flowers of this variety are yellow in color.In floristry, it is used to decorate reservoirs. Among the most common varieties are the yellow Golden Queen, the double-flowered Flore Pleno, and the Umkirch pink irises.

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2 Characteristic features of cultivation

The cultivation of irises does not require a lot of labor, since the plant is unpretentious. But this process has its own characteristic features:

• Rhizomes of flowers grow horizontally and often come to the surface. Therefore, in late autumn, the planting of irises is covered with peat and earth, and with the onset of spring, the winter shelter is carefully removed.
• Plants can move as they grow, so plant them with a fan of leaves in the direction of the row, not across.
• Bearded irises must be planted on the sand. To do this, sand is poured into the hole with a slide and the root system of the plant is spread over it. If the flower is planted too deep, it will not bloom.
• These crops do not like organic fertilizers. They accept liquid mineral supplements much better.

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3 How to plant irises?

Before planting, you need to find a suitable place for flowers. This should be an area with deep groundwater. If they come close to the surface, then during planting they make a good drainage layer or arrange a low mound. The site should be well lit, as this flower loves the abundance of the sun. In the shade, it does not bloom so well, the duration of this period is significantly reduced. It is important to protect the plants from wind gusts. If this cannot be done, then adult specimens will need to be tied to supports.

Bulbous irises can be planted in the ground in spring, when the ground in the garden warms up to +10 degrees. At the same time, the specific dates for planting bulbs may be different for Siberia and the Moscow region and depend on climatic conditions. With good care, such varieties bloom already in July, but in most cases, irises begin to bloom fully only the next year.

It is beneficial to plant this plant in the fall, a few weeks before frost. In this case, it is important that the flower has time to take root before the onset of cold weather. Otherwise, it may die from frost.

Most often, irises are planted in the summer, starting in July. With such a planting, the plant will definitely have time to take root and lay several buds, which will begin to bloom next year in the spring.

The soil for planting irises should be neutral and light.

Plant rhizome varieties correctly as follows:

1. 1. Dig a hole and make a small mound in its center.
2. 2. The central root of the plant is placed on this hill and the rest of the roots are spread along its sides. If a rhizome flower is planted, then the rhizome is positioned so that it is almost level with the ground.
3. 3. The lateral roots are covered with soil and pressed a little, and the central root is covered with sand with a layer of 2 cm.

If you want to plant a bulbous iris variety, dig a hole three diameters deep and place the plant bulb in it with the bottom down. If the bulb is too close to the ground level, it can die from frost. A distance of 10 cm must be observed between landings.

In early spring, you can plant newly acquired iris bulbs at home in pots. When the soil warms up well enough, they can be moved outdoors.

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3.1 How to grow from seed?

Iris seeds can be planted in September or March. When sowing in autumn, there is a high probability that frosts will come quite late and the plants will have time to germinate before the onset of cold weather.If this happens, then the young flower will freeze in winter. Therefore, it is best to keep the planting material until spring and plant in March.

To keep the harvested seed material until March, it is wrapped in moistened cloth and placed in a container. The container is placed in the refrigerator for a month, and then transferred to a warm room. When the seeds hatch, they are planted in light soil and additional lighting is organized. In May, the grown seedlings can be moved into open ground.

4 How to arrange for care?

Irises require standard care, including weeding, watering and feeding. The weeds are pulled out regularly, being careful not to damage the roots of the plant. Young specimens must be covered for the winter; adult flowers do not need winter shelter.

Fertilizers for these flowers are needed from early spring to mid-summer. The first spring top dressing is applied while the soil is wet. For this purpose, mineral granular fertilizers are used, carefully embedding them in the ground. To do this, use a mixture of 2 parts of nitrogen fertilizers with potash and phosphorus, taken in 1 part. During the budding period, top dressing is applied, consisting of 1 part of phosphorus fertilizers, 3 parts of nitrogen and the same amount of potassium fertilizers. After the end of flowering, a mixture of equal amounts of phosphorus and potassium is introduced.

Irises need to be watered infrequently. If the summer is rainy, then the plants have enough atmospheric precipitation. In a particularly dry summer, watering is done in moderation.

In the spring, irises can be attacked by pests, so they must be sprayed during this period with complex preparations of a wide range of effects. Processing is carried out every two weeks before the start of bud laying. Most often, flowers suffer from bacteriosis, so they must be regularly examined for signs of rot. If such signs are found, the damaged rhizome must be dug up, and the planting site must be disinfected with a solution of potassium permanganate. In order to prevent possible diseases, every autumn it is necessary to cut off the dried foliage of plants, as pests accumulate in it. Three times during the growing season, irises must be treated with a preparation containing copper, for example, copper sulfate.

Iris seeds are essential in order to breed the most interesting varieties of this plant. The fact is that the propagation of cultivated ornamental plants with the help of seeds is a long-term work. This is necessary only in two cases: when the plant is an annual, or when the florist is especially concerned about inheriting some of the plant's favorite properties.

1 Diversity and properties of species

These plants are also called cockerels because of the flower shape resembling the head of a beautiful rooster, when a spreading comb and earrings are combined with beautiful multi-colored plumage.

In most regions of Russia, these plants grow well both in the wild and in the beds of flower growers. Wild irises, predominantly purple, yellow and red, prefer swampy lowlands. During floods, they bloom, being in the water up to the leaves. If the flood does not last long, then these plants perfectly survive temporary waterlogging, continuing their life already in drier conditions.

The decorative value of cultivated varieties of irises lies not only in the fact that their flowers have an unusual shape, a variety of colors, but also in the fact that they bloom when the spring species of plants have already faded, and the summer ones are not yet going to bloom.

Filling in the color break of the off-season has a special value in itself. However, the irises, having finished blooming, continue to decorate the area with vigorous straight leaves, which retain their juiciness and color saturation for a long time.

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2 Landing site

Curbs can be formed from these plants. If you combine them with some small plants, such as daisies, you get a kind of frame for a path or flower bed. When the irises bloom, small, modest, but still bright flowers will bloom under their straight leaves like arrows.

Irises are perfect for decorating the coastal zone of an artificial reservoir. Coastal irises are especially well combined with water hyacinths.

These plants will look good in a flower bed formed from plants that bloom at different times. If you place all the views correctly, you get a wonderful change of aspects. At first, ephemeroids like adonis will bloom, then it's time for the tulips to bloom, irises will follow, then you can fill the color space with asters, completing the series of colors with autumn chrysanthemums. Such a flower bed will never get bored, and iris leaves will not allow emptiness in this endless change of color shades.

3 Breeding methods

This name means several types of plants at once. These are root and bulbous species, which are also divided into several groups and varieties.

To fill decorative flower beds, root irises are usually used, which are called cockerels or killer whales.

All rhizome species and varieties have xiphoid flat leaves located in the lower part of the peduncle. The stem itself has no leaves. Each species and variety can have several peduncles. By the end of May, large single fragrant flowers appear on them.

If you are the proud owner of a special variety, and you want to develop some of the signs of your treasure, then a flower located on a plant with these signs should be covered with gauze to prevent spontaneous pollination. In this case, you will have to play the role of a bee yourself, transferring pollen with a brush or cotton swab from one flower to another. After successful pollination, the gauze can be removed, waiting for the seeds to ripen with the necessary genetic information. After the petals fall off, a fruit-box with seeds will appear on the peduncle. You need to wait until they are fully ripe. However, do not miss the moment when the box opens itself and drops the seeds on the ground, where it will be difficult to find your seeds.

Thus, irises can be propagated in three ways: by dividing rhizomes, bulbs, and also using specially selected seeds.

4 Growing from seeds

There are 2 ways to grow irises from seeds. This is growing seedlings and planting seeds directly in open ground. Each of these methods has its own advantages and disadvantages.

The algorithm for growing seedlings involves the following sequence of actions:

1. 1 Preparatory period. The collected seeds must be sorted out immediately, removing small and obviously not promising specimens. Then all the seeds must be folded into a closed container, having previously wrapped them in a damp cloth. All this should be stored in the uppermost compartment of the refrigerator or in a cold subfield for about a month.
2. 2 Test for germination. It is carried out according to the classical scheme. If you don't want to pre-germinate, place the seeds in a glass of water before sowing and wait 30 minutes. During this time, all the seeds will be divided into 2 parts - some of them will float up and float on the surface, while others will drown and lie at the bottom. Seeds floating on the surface are dry and dead and should be discarded. After draining the water from the vessel, remove the iris seeds from the bottom. They can be planted quite calmly - they are alive. You can do without water. Place the seeds on a low-sided flat and then blow on them. Dead seeds will be light, so they will immediately move somewhere. They, of course, need to be thrown away, and the rest of the seeds must be sown. Pre-germination is also a test for germination. Place a cotton cloth soaked in water on a flat surface.Place the seeds on a wet cloth and cover them with the same cloth on top. Now it remains to ensure that the fabric never dries out, but that at the same time the water does not stagnate there. After about a week, live and healthy seeds will begin to sprout. Now you need to make sure not only that it is always wet, but also that the seeds do not overgrow.
3. 3Pre-planting in pots. Slightly germinated or only seeds tested for germination must be sown in pots of sand, and then put in a greenhouse, where they will winter.

You can also plant seeds in peat pots around February or early March. You need to fill the pots with garden soil, deepen each seed by about 2 cm. After the irises begin to grow, they need to be moved to a place where it is warm and light. And in the spring, when the irises from the seeds finally grow and get stronger, at the right time they are planted in open ground.

This path is difficult, requiring attention and several procedures. Gardeners who do not have time for complex multi-walkers simply sow iris seeds in the open field in the spring. This is done in regions where winters are harsh and fall planting can lead to seed death.

Autumn planting of seeds in the ground is carried out where frosts are weak, and spring comes early.

In any case, the boxes with ripe seeds must first be dried well. This can be done simply in the sun or indoors, where it is warm and always dry. After making sure the seeds are dry and free from mold or rot, place them in a dry, cool, dark place over the winter.

For autumn planting, the best time to sow seeds is mid-September. You need to sow in well-prepared fertile soil with a lot of organic matter. When preparing the beds, be sure to bury a layer of fresh manure mixed with leaves, straw, dry grass to a depth of about 20 cm. Pour some complex mineral fertilizers at the very bottom.

In the finished bed, make rows with an interval of 10 cm.It is necessary to bury the seeds to a depth of about 2 cm.In a row between each plant, a distance of 10 cm must be observed.

When the seeds germinate, and the green leaves of the cockerels rise above the already cooling soil, before freezing they need to be covered with plastic wrap, padding polyester, a layer of straw, grass, leaves, sawdust (you can mix everything). Sheltered seedlings will not freeze in winter or start growing during the early spring thaws.

Spring sowing is carried out in the same way, but not earlier than in mid-May. There is no need to harbor these seeds. But it is necessary to feed.

Plants sown in the ground do not bloom in the first year, but they root well, which allows them to quickly grow throughout the garden.