Asked on Apr 23, 2014
How to care for bulbs?
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We have beautiful spring bulb flowers but are having trouble with extensive weeds all around. We also need to know the best care since we have been in Arizona for the last 15 years.. Okay, all you gardeners give us your best advise.
16 answers
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Spring bulbs generally need very little care. The only thing they really need is for you to allow the foliage to fully mature—to turn yellow—before you do anything to them. If you are highly motivated you can sprinkle on some all-purpose slow release fertilizer like Osmocote when the foliage starts to emerge in the spring, but I had thousands of daffodils and other bulbs in my New York garden and never did a thing. (The beautiful iris you have pictured is technically a rhizome, not a bulb, and does not go fully dormant in the summer so it should be treated like other perennials.) The best way to deal with weeds, once you have gotten them under control, is to plant densely and to use a good hardwood mulch on the space that remains.
Douglas Hunt
on Apr 24, 2014
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I love Iris and I happen to have this one! Iris, as Douglas states, are a rhizome and should be treated as any other perennial because they will keep their leaves all summer and even into winter here in zone 7. The key to growing Iris is not to let the top of the rhizome be covered. The Iris love to have their 'belly' getting some sun. I have grown Iris for over 20 years and find that they do not like to be crowded and divided every 4 or 5 years, other plants can grow around them with no trouble, and they are virtually maintenance free! The ruffled ones grow and spread a bit slower than the traditional Iris but this particular Iris could be the re-bloomer too. Happy gardening and enjoy the blooms!
The Garden Frog with C Renee
on Apr 24, 2014
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Thanks for the help! How about using Preen between the flowers for the weeds? When they are done blooming do we do anything else?
Salvage Sister and Mister
on Apr 24, 2014
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My problem with the iris in my garden, is that they tend to droop over after a rain or wind. I've noticed neighbors' aren't having this problem. What am I doing wrong? Perhaps I've not planted them close enough to each other? They appear to me to be in clusters like others, but still bend over all the time.
Luann Chandler
on Apr 25, 2014
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How do I keep Bermuda grass from taking over my iris beds?
Mary
on Apr 25, 2014
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Thanks. I have considered starting over but our yard is full of Bermuda grass. I was hoping there was a remedy that I wasn't aware of, some magic potion. LOL
Mary
on Apr 25, 2014
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I moved some white iris last fall that needed to be separated. I barely covered the rhizomes with soil. Now the leaves look great ad strong, but no blooms. What did I do wrong?
Liliana Wells
on Apr 25, 2014
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@1 result is available, use up and down arrow keys to navigate.Douglas HuntThanks, they really don't get full sunlight.......some in the early morning and then not again till late afternoon. That could be my problem. I love iris and hate to see them all bent and sad like that. Thanks again.
Luann Chandler
on Apr 25, 2014
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@C Renee Fuller: I think the sun thing is the biggest problem with my iris's . I love them, but am thinking I should find a happier place for them to grow. I don't see any evidence of borers or slugs (but I'm not an expert at that) and they seem to have healthy blooms every year. I'm waiting now for them to reach blooming stage and they seem to be on course with others in the neighborhood, so maybe this year things will be better for them. If not, I'll just find a happier, sunnier bed for them. Thanks.
Luann Chandler
on Apr 25, 2014
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I use bone meal to feed them ( my wisteria gets some too) I let the plants die off and cut them back after 3 weeks. I never dig them in late fall, I live in a milder climate.I do divide after two years.
Patricia W
on Apr 25, 2014
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Patricia W thanks for the info
Salvage Sister and Mister
on Apr 25, 2014
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Appreciate this great advice. Thanks everyone for all the valuable info!
Salvage Sister and Mister
on Apr 25, 2014
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Thanks, that's a good suggestion.
Mary
on Apr 26, 2014
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I grow 90% of my perennials in pots, that way I can arrange them differently every year. Also easier to give away when I have to many. I have many varieties of iris, including one of my favorite dwarf French iris - blooms first and smells like lilacs.
Theresa Shaut
on Apr 27, 2014
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Theresa, problem is we inherited this yard with the house we bought. It's all very pretty so we are making sure we don't do anything wrong to some things we aren't familiar with.
Salvage Sister and Mister
on Apr 27, 2014
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Just had a speaker at our garden club (Meade Garden Club, Topeka, KS), a couple weeks ago: they grew iris! Acres! Regarding weeds: they used a pre-imergent in early, early spring, lots of it! ( there are granular types) For now, enjoy their blooms, cut spent blooms as far down to the ground as possible ....just the stem! (Otherwise the food for the roots goes up the stem to form seed in the dying flower head...not good!). Cut leaves to about 3-4 inches in October; if they are over crowded, blooms will be few so you can trans plant (divide) in October.....you only plant tuber at half its thickness depth; they like being exposed! May have to wait an entire season tilt hey bloom. Ask your local nursery. Google care for iris, etc.
Kimberly Saxton Scruggs
on Feb 23, 2015
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