Hi,

Ive got some (I assume are) tall bearded irises, growing in a pot, they didnt flower last year (first year planted as "bulbs") and I was about to throw them out when they produced two beautiful flushes of flowers. As a result Im quite fond of them.

So, I want to do the following but not sure when and how.

Firstly I like to move them to a nicer pot for the spring/summer and secondly I liked to propogate them.

I have already cut them down to a few inches (I think this was a mistake, but I just treated them like other bulbs).

Can I lift and store the rhizomes?

Or am I better off leaving them where they are, moving to them a different pot next year, if so when?

Any advice please?

Thanks

"gasdoctor" wrote
Ive got some (I assume are) tall bearded irises, growing in a pot, they
didnt flower last year (first year planted as "bulbs") and I was about
to throw them out when they produced two beautiful flushes of flowers.
As a result Im quite fond of them.

So, I want to do the following but not sure when and how.

Firstly I like to move them to a nicer pot for the spring/summer and
secondly I liked to propogate them.

I have already cut them down to a few inches (I think this was a
mistake, but I just treated them like other bulbs).

Can I lift and store the rhizomes?

Or am I better off leaving them where they are, moving to them a
different pot next year, if so when?

Any advice please?

I reply in the belief that you have got TBI's not Dutch Irises.

In the ground I was always told to split and replant 8 weeks after
flowering, so about beginning of August. As yours are in pots it won't be a
problem to move them to a bigger pot at any time, they usually do better in
the ground though. When they get too big for the largest pot just remove
them and cut them into pieces with a crown or bud on each bit, discard the
old pieces of root, normally you only lift and split every three years at
most as you lose some flowering each time.
No, you should not cut the leaves down, you are destroying their food
supply, they will lose any leaves they don't want over the winter so just
keep them tidy.

--
Regards
Bob H
17mls W. of London.UK