| Re-Blooming Irises
Once again, several varieties delighted us last year with their normal mid May to June bloom period.
They bloomed again the latter part of August and with the mild fall, continued to
bloom until late October.
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There are several varieties of Bearded Iris that will bloom again after the regular season. While not guaranteed and subject to weather conditions, a good re-bloom of some Irises is possible if you select varieties that are known to re-bloom in your area.
Just a note to the wise, many Irises advertised as “Re-
Bloomers”, will only re-bloom where the summers are
longer, ie, in warmer climates. Better to buy from a local
grower who has experienced success and can make
recommendations for your area.
Re-bloom can be encouraged with extra water and fertilizer
during summer droughts. In the fall of 2006, Bob and I prepared and
planted a bed specifically for re-bloomers. It's closer to the water supply
so if necessary, we can help Mother nature in the event of a drought by
borrowing from the pond every couple of weeks. However, the last 2 summers
have been very wet and what the irises want is lots of sun!
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Total Recall
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On cloudy fall days, there is nothing more cheerful than a bouquet of
re-blooming irises; particularly the fragrant ones. Bob photographed several
bouquets of them for you to enjoy.
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| Bouquet In The Window |
Bouquet In The Garden |
Some of the re-bloomers need a second season after planting to give a good
re-bloom.
Immortality seems to be a little shy the first year and then is the most reliable.
Queen Dorothy, though not a
spectacular flower, is also an excellent re-bloomer and fragrant as well.
Lady Emma never fails. There
are Re-bloomers in every class of bearded iris so you could make room for a couple of dwarfs. We enjoyed
blooms from some of our newest varieties and were very pleased with Double Your Fun, and I'll Be Back, both Intermediate Bearded Irises.
Every year is a little different since the re-bloom is spread out over several months and it's not easy to
predict which will and which won't re-bloom. We plan to continue to introduce and test more of these varieties and to
maintain bloom records which will identify reliability patterns. You are welcome to give us a call and/or
drop by in the fall to discover which varieties are re-blooming for us.
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Re-Bloomers In Our Gardens (South-Western Ontario - Canadian Hardiness Zone 5b |
| Tall bearded |
Autumn Circus,
Best Bet,
Breakers,
Cantina,
Champagne Elegance,
Clarence,
Daughter Of Stars,
Double Shot,
Immortality,
Jennifer Rebecca,
Mariposa Autumn,
Pink Attraction,
Queen Dorothy,
Renown,
Rosalie Figge,
Summer Olympics,
Total Recall, Victoria Falls |
| Miniature Tall Bearded |
Lady Emma |
| Intermediate Bearded |
Blessed Again,
Champagne Encore,
Double Your Fun,
Fast Forward,
I'll Be Back
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| Standard Dwarf Bearded |
Autumn Jester,
Baby Blessed,
Blueberry Tart,
Forever Blue |
| Miniature Dwarf Bearded |
Forever Violet |
There are a couple that we have not seen as yet and should re-bloom this year. They
are
I'm
Back, a relatively new Tall Bearded introduction and
Orange Harvest.
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