I can't tell if my Iris' are dying or not?

Question

I dug up a bunch of iris' a couple of months ago. I planted them in the ground a couple of days later (you can leave the bulbs out up to 2 weeks). But, now they seem wilted and getting brown. They were never REALLY healthy, but they should be looking a little perkier by now...I thought.

Are they getting that way because they are just done blooming? Or is there something I can give them to get healthier?

Ok....I didn't know about how deep to plant them. I didn't plant them really deep, but they're not ontop either. Should I re-dig them up? Or atleast maybe uncover them a bit. But, I'm not sure that will matter since they are dormant right now.

Answer 1

Without seeing your plants, one or more things could be going on:

1. If they were done blooming when you dug them and then allowed to dry out before replanting they may have been fooled into hibernation. AKA: Summer dormancy

2. If they were actively growing and moved-transplant shock will do this and may not improve for some time.

3. Iris need to be planted almost on top of the ground and are very often planted too deep! They are susceptible to root-rot, from over watering, wet compacted soil and over-crowding.

They need ample moisture when actively growing but very little during summer dormancy when they turn brown and shrivel. This is the best time to divide the clump.

If they are not too deep, they will bounce back next spring. Then watch for aphids-they spread viruses that some Iris are susceptible to. For the most part, they are pretty much maintenence-free.

Answer 2

Bulb or rhizome iris? I'm going to assume rhizome as that's the most common. First I hope you didn't plant the rhizome too deep. It's a root and needs to be at the soil level, just barely covered. Too deep and it could rot.

Second, iris go dormant in summer's heat, do they look.......tired. This would be the time to divide them, not several months ago........could be you harvested them too soon and they didn't have a chance to recharge themselves. So hopefully this are hanging in there trying to make up for lost ground.

If they are iris bulbs, did you transplant while they still had leaves? It is possible but sets them back. They transplant better if the leaves have browned off signifying the bulbs have recharged.

I wouldn't be feeding bulbs right now nor iris for that matter. The time would be early next spring before blooming.

Answer 3

they have done their thing for this year,,,,,,,,cut them back to about 5 inches .do not plant them deeper than they were before........