tall bearded iris cantina

Plant a Reblooming Iris and Double Your Pleasure!

Posted on Posted in Bearded Iris, Iris Flowers, Uncategorized

Do you have an iris plant that will produce flowers twice?

For us iris plant and flower lovers there is just one thing wrong with them – They don’t bloom long enough!

But to the rescue are reblooming irises. Yes, there are some irises that not only bloom in the spring but also bloom again, usually in the fall. Some now also have the tendency to bloom for a more extended period, like in the late spring after their first bloom and perhaps again in the fall. So, when you are planting iris or looking at an iris plant you should consider if it or one similar to it might be a reblooming iris.

Thanks to hybridizers that have dedicated their lives to developing the rebloom tendency in a greater variety of irises, almost anyone can find at least a few iris plants that will rebloom for them.

It used to be that a reblooming iris flower was –well, a less than desirable specimen, without modern form and beauty. That has mostly changed now, with reblooming irises that rival the beauty and form of other iris plant varieties that only bloom once a year.

What will bloom for you? Well, that depends a lot on where you live, since some will not rebloom without a longer extended season where the weather stays mild in the fall. The Reblooming Iris Society has a checklist of varieties and the zones they have been reported to bloom in. Every five (5) years a composite of Reblooming Iris information is bound into book form called the Cumulative Check List of Reblooming Irises. You can get information from their website link above.

Since I have grown irises in both Nebraska and Texas, I have seen some iris plants which do well in Nebraska will not rebloom in Texas, and vice versa. So it is not just always the extended season that makes a difference, but the genes in that iris plant and what conditions it likes to rebloom.

From my observations and experiments, it seems to me that the most important thing you can do to get those iris plants with the tendency to rebloom to actually do so is to make sure they get regular water through the summer so they do not go into a deep dormancy. It also helps if they have a little extra fertilizer. This is because the reblooming iris plant must bloom, make increases that will bloom again that year, and then make increases that will bloom again the following spring.

Many people do not realize that a single iris plant (or fan) only blooms once.

And then it is the increase, or new iris plant, that blooms the next spring or bloom time, as in the case of rebloomers. The old rhizome (which is like a thick underground root) will nourish the new iris plant for awhile before it finally decays.

tall bearded iris cantina
Cantina

Some reblooming irises will not rebloom unless they have been left in one place for 2 or 3 years.

 

‘Cantina’ is a variety that bloomed for me a few weeks after its spring bloom And there were a couple that bloomed this summer when the temperature was 105 degrees! I can’t remember exactly which ones they were now – I guess the heat affected my mind, too!

tall bearded iris autumn buglar
Autumn Buglar
tall bearded iris winterland
Winterland

Although I replanted most of my irises this fall, some are determined to rebloom. ‘Autumn Buglar’ bloomed about a month ago and is still sending up bloom stalks. ‘Then Again’ just bloomed. ‘Winterland’ is blooming now. And as I write this on November 24, ‘Raspberry Frost’ and ‘Bountiful Harvest’ are sending up bloom stalks that I hope will make it before a freeze gets them.

tall bearded iris raspberry frost
Raspberry Frost
Bountiful Harvest
Bountiful Harvest

This year was certainly not an ideal year for iris plants with the horrible extended heat and no rain that we experienced this summer. Given those conditions, I am pleased that any are reblooming.

So if you like irises, give some reblooming ones a try. It may take a little trial and error to see which ones will perform best for you, but it should be worth it to see them bloom again.

P.S.

I would love to have your comments if you have had success with reblooming irises.

tall bearded iris pink attraction
Pink Attraction
tall bearded iris then again
Then Again

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to double your pleasure join me in growing reblooming irises!

David

David and Cindy
David and Cindy