Harsh Winter Causes Damage to Bearded Irises

Today while cleaning the winter debris from the bearded iris garden I noticed that many of the rhizomes had suffered from erosion due to ice and snow.  Instead of being under the soil many of them were fully exposed which concerns me.

My iris garden with many buds 

The first thing that I did today was clear the iris gardens of all leftover leaves, sticks and check the rhizome for damage.  I expect many of the plants to perish as it was an extreme cold winter with heavy snow and ice. 

Tomorrow I am going to amend in my wheelbarrow top soil with organic compost and diatomaceous earth.  Then I will spread an even layer over the irises, covering the exposes rhizomes and leaving only the tip for nutrient collection from the sun. 

I am hoping that this natural fertilizer and borer pest control will aid in healthy spring iris growth and bloom production.

The photograph of my iris garden.  Enjoy!

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Diatomaceous Earth Pest Control for Irises

Treat your iris garden with diatomaceous earth food grade and you will control the borer pests and also grow healthy plants that will produce beautiful blooms.  

For healthy irises with beautiful blooms follow my pest control tips.
photo of my garden..Sgolis

For the past week, I have been cleaning up my gardens by removing the oak leaves that fell from the trees at the end of March, the first week of April.  When I got to my iris gardens I noticed that the wet leaves that covered the tubers had attracted borers.   

The borers will eat the tubers and weaken the health of the plant and if the iris is left untreated the borers will eventually kill the irises.  I acted quickly to this infestation of pests by treating the garden with diatomaceous earth food grade.

When it comes to treating my garden for pests I prefer to use a natural substance that will not harm humans, wildlife, and pets.  Over the years I have had excellent results with diatomaceous earth when I use it for yard and garden pest control.

Instructions

Remove the leaf debris or mulch from your iris bed on a day when there is no wind. 

Fill a powder sugar shaker with diatomaceous earth food grade and take safety steps to protect yourself from inhaling the dust by wearing a fine particle ventilator mask.

Loosen the dirt that surrounds your iris tuber and then shake the diatomaceous into the loosened soil. Cover the dust with soil. This treatment will kill the pests in the soil also. 

Shake the diatomaceous earth food grade all over your iris garden. This treatment will prevent above-the-surface garden pests from eating your tuber or iris leaves.  

Spring showers will cause the diatomaceous earth to enter the soil that surrounds the irises. This is good as it will continue to kill off pests in the soil that feed on iris tubers.  

Watch your garden for any signs of borers.  If you view a yellow streak in your iris leaf or insects crawling on or around your iris tubers then retreat the garden with the diatomaceous earth food grade.  

Notes from Sgolis

Keep your iris garden free of weeds and debris.  As this will enable the iris plants to take in the nutrients from the sun and your plants will be healthy and produce large flowers.