How to Plant and Grow Bearded Iris

Perennial Bearded Iris are a mainstay in many gardens and public landscapes and for good reason. Known for their distinctive furry "beard", bearded iris are one of the most reliable and dramatic of the spring-blooming perennials. Low maintenance bearded irises will grow and flower where other perennials won’t.  At this point in the season, bearded iris are available as rooted perennials, ready to take home and plant. 

Like any other addition to your garden, the better the culture, the more spectacular the display. Choose a spot in the garden where your new plants will receive at least six hours of full sun daily. Bearded iris plants grow from rhizomes and thrive in soils that have been amended, so add 3-4 inches of Sheep, Peat and Compost to the existing soil and dig it in 5-6 inches. 

Next, add some Steamed Bone Meal or Dutch Bulb Food to the planting site. Carefully remove the plant from its container and place it in the ground at the same level it was in the container. Bearded irises should be planted so the tops of the rhizomes are visible and the roots are facing downwards in the soil. It’s also important to note that bearded iris will grow in the direction of the heel so place your rhizomes with the leaves planted in the direction you want the plant to grow. Once in the ground, be sure to water the planting site thoroughly. 

For established bearded irises now’s the time to feed them, using Steamed Bone Meal or Dutch Bulb Food. Place the fertilizer around the root zone and avoid contact with the rhizome itself.  Bearded Iris are generally low maintenance plants season after season, but over time they can become crowded. When this happens, they produce fewer, smaller blooms or won't flower at all. When you notice your bearded iris aren't blooming, it's an indication the plant needs to be divided. Dividing bearded iris is best done in late summer or early fall. These perennials grow in clumps and the root of a bearded iris is called a rhizome. The best tool to use to dig bearded iris rhizomes is a spading fork. Spading forks make it easy to get under and lift the rhizome without causing damage to the roots. Once you’ve got the clump of bearded iris out of the ground, you’ll be able to see the rhizomes clearly. You’ll want to remove any old or diseased rhizomes and treat the remaining, healthy rhizomes with dusting Sulfur. You can divide the clump with a knife or by simply breaking off each root with your hand. Trim the leaves in a fan shape down to between 4" and 6". Mark the leaves with the name of the iris, so you’ll remember which one it is. Add some Steamed Bone Meal or Dutch Bulb Food and place the rhizome so that the roots are facing downward, then add enough soil to cover the roots, while leaving the very top of the rhizome exposed. Next, water the area thoroughly.  Your bearded iris plants will establish through the fall and be ready to bloom next spring. Bearded iris plants are among the most elegant and colorful perennials you can grow. Planted right, they will bloom dependably for years to come.  

 

Tomato Planting Tips

 
While we’re all anxious to get our tomato plants in the ground, it’s important to remember that tomatoes are warm weather plants, so temperature is an important factor when it comes to deciding when to plant. You’ll want to wait until the night time temperatures stay consistently above 50° F and the soil temperatures are above 55° F before you plant tomatoes. Once the temperatures moderate and your tomato plants have been hardened off sufficiently, it’s time to plant.  To get the best from your tomato plants this year, pick the sunniest spot in the garden. Your tomato plants need at least 6 hours of sunlight a day; 8 hours a day is better. If at all possible, choose a spot where you didn’t grow tomatoes or potatoes last year. Rotating your crops every year helps cut down on disease problems. Great soil is a must for growing tomatoes, so plan to amend the site with compost and peat moss. Add 2" to 3" of Earth Essentials Sheep, Peat and Compost and dig it in to your existing soil 6" to 8". Once the soil is amended, plant your tomatoes on their sides in a trench. Tomato plants have adventitious root systems. This means that the tomato plant is capable of producing roots all along its stem. 

Trench-planting tomatoes places roots closer to the surface, in the soil’s warm zone. In this zone, your tomato plants will develop more roots and the roots will stay warmer through the course of the growing season. Warmer, larger roots will give you more tomatoes. Start by removing the lower leaves from the plant. Next, dig a trench deep enough to hold your tomato plant and add a granular fertilizer rated for tomatoes to the bottom of the trench.

Fertilome and Happy Frog organic fertilizers will provide the  right balance of nutrients necessary to consistently produce the best fruit. Plus, they contain mycorrhizae, beneficial fungi which will help your tomato roots grow bigger roots and take up nutrients more efficiently.  Place your tomato plant in the trench and add enough soil to bury the stem. When you get to the top of the tomato, gently build up the soil until the top of the tomato is upright. Please note: this method does not apply to grafted tomatoes. Plant grated tomatoes straight down, while making sure the graft point is at the soil line. Now that your tomato is planted, give it a good drink.  Your tomato plants need to be watered deeply and regularly through the growing season. Not watering consistently can lead to many problems including Blossom End Rot and cracking. 

Watering inconsistently can also cause the flowers to drop and the fruit not to set. Avoid watering your tomato plants overhead. Instead, irrigate at the base of the plant. Staking is important because it keeps your plant upright which allows even exposure to sunlight and helps produce more fruit. As your plant grows, pinch off any suckers that form in the crotch of two branches. They won’t produce fruit and they take away energy from the plant. That said, go easy on pruning the rest of the plant. Removing too many leaves can damage your fruit due to sunburn.  If you experience problems setting fruit, apply Blossom Set to your plants.  Other supplements available include Cal-Mag which will help the fruit ripen more evenly and help reduce Blossom End Rot problems. Doing these things now and through the course of the growing season will help you grow better tomatoes. 

Time to Plant Summer-Blooming Bulbs

 

When we talk about planting bulbs in the garden, we often think about spring-blooming standards such as crocus, tulips and daffodils. These are hardy bulbs. We plant them in the fall and with just a little maintenance, enjoy their colorful displays spring after spring. There is another group of bulbs which planted now, will add dramatic color to your summer and early fall garden. Included in this group are Canna Lilies, Asiatic Lilies, Oriental Lilies, Gladiolus, Dahlias and Tuberous Begonias. With the exception of Asiatic and Oriental lilies, these are non-hardy bulbs, meaning they require special attention at the end of the blooming season. That said, the extra work is worth the effort, giving the long-blooming habits of these bulbs. Going forward, what we're generically calling "bulbs", also includes tubers, corms and rhizomes, as noted. Before planting, amend your soil with compost and peat moss, then dig in some Bone Meal or Dutch Bulb Food, to feed your bulbs as they grow. Grown from bulbs, Asiatic and Oriental lilies are the hardiest of all the lily hybrids. If you planted some last year, you may see them poking through the ground already. 

Once they are established in your garden, they'll produce showy blooms for many years. Asiatic lilies multiply and spread through the garden very quickly. Oriental lilies won't spread out as rapidly as Asiatic lilies, but they tend to be more fragrant. Plant Asiatic and Oriental Lilies three times as deep as the height of the bulb, with the flat side down. 

Canna lilies feature attractive green, bronze or variegated foliage, in addition to their flowers.  Cannas do well in garden beds and containers. The canna “bulb” is actually a rhizome. Plant cannas about 6" deep and about 18" apart. 

Dahlias are grown from tubers and come in a wide variety of colors. Plant dahlias only as deep as the crown and include a strong stake to tie your dahlia stalks to. Dahlias will bring color to your garden from late summer to first frost. For more late summer and fall color, plant gladiolus. Available in an array of colors, gladiolus “bulbs” are called corms. Plant your corms about 3" deep and 4" to 5" apart. 

Tuberous begonias make incredible displays of color in a shady spot on your patio. They can be planted in containers, hanging baskets or directly in the garden. Cannas, dahlias, gladiolus and begonias will not survive our winters. If you want to keep them year to year, they have to be dug up and stored. Your other option is to treat them as annuals and replace them every year. 

 

 

How to Harden Off Tomato and Vegetable Starts

It’s May and gardening season is in full swing. Our garden beds are ready and the weather is warming up.  Before you actually plant, it’s important to take your time when it comes to moving your new seedlings to the great outdoors. This applies whether you grew your own tomatoes, vegetables and flowers from seed or bought them from our greenhouse. Moving your plants from the house or greenhouse directly into the garden without giving them time to adjust will mean you’ll lose most, if not all of them. At the very least, you’ll set the plants back weeks due to transplant shock. This slow transition from indoors to the outside is called “hardening off”. Hardening off plants gradually exposes them to outdoor light, wind and temperatures. The process is easy, but it takes time. In fact, you should plan on a week or so to get your immature plants ready to transplant into the garden. 

On the first day, pick a sheltered, shady spot under a tree or on the patio and leave them there for 5 or 6 hours. Bring them in that night. The second day, place your plants where they will receive morning sun and afternoon shade. This will help your plants adjust to direct sunlight. Leave them in this spot for 6 to 7 hours. Over the next few days, gradually increase sunlight exposure until your young plants are sitting outside for the entire day. Once this has been accomplished, start leaving them out later at night, always keeping an eye on the nighttime temperatures. If the temperatures at night fall below 50 degrees, bring them inside. After 7 or 8 days, your plants should be ready to plant. Even then, you'll want to keep an eye on the forecast. 

The average last day of frost is May 10, but this can vary greatly. May's weather can change quickly, so keep a  frost blanket handy to throw over your plants to protect them. Make sure you keep your plants watered during this hardening off process. Being outside means they will dry out faster, so keep an eye on the watering. Finally, when you’re ready to plant, pick a cloudy day. This will help your plants make the transition from container to the garden even easier.