Reticulate Iris 2010

[indigo]

Some stunning pics there!

I bought this little pot and realise from the pics here that the bulbs should in fact be below the soil which I will rectify later.  How deep should the bulbs be?  I have repotted in a larger pot though.  They are just labelled Iris Reticulata.  Help with ID appreciated please.

[Susan Band]

I think it is safe to say that the Mcmurtie hybrids are hardy  Iris Evening Twilight trapped under the ice in one of my boxes, hope the bulbs are still okay.
Susan

[Calvin Becker]

Mark, I have never seen any available here in SA. I don't know why they are not around. Our local bulb wholesale dealer, Hadeco, supplies pre-chilled tulips as well as Narcissus, Hyacinths, Ranunculus, Leucojum, Dutch Iris etc every year to garden centres but I have never seen reticulate irises. I noticed last year that they had crocus available to order off their website for the first time that I know of.

[art600]

Some reticulate irises in the greenhouse today.

[daveyp1970]

Susan do you sell Mcmurtie hybrids or is that just from your own private collection as i'm after getting my hands on some.

[art600]

Susan do you sell Mcmurtie hybrids or is that just from your own private collection as i'm after getting my hands on some.

You are young -unless that is an old avatar - and should try growing them from seed.  Old timers like David Nicholson and I are taking this route.  Seed is not expensive and you can buy quite a lot of different selections.  As Ian Y says growing from seed is the best way and in the variability you may get some nice surprises.

Sorry Susan if I have just cost you sales 

[daveyp1970]

Thank you Authur for your kind comment that photo was last year,can you please point me in the direction of the seed source.Sorry to be a pain

[art600]

Davey

Website is www.reticulatas.com   Be warned, you need time when going to this site as the images can take your breath away.

[Susan Band]

Arthur, If I had got round to buying the seed when I first enquired they would have been flowering by now. I am positive I will get round to it this year.
Davey, I am bulking them up at the moment,Evening Twilight has done really well outside so far and it is on the list. I have also a couple of others which I will check their names and probably put on this year.
Susan

[daveyp1970]

FANTASTIC SUSAN i have a look on your list

[WimB]

Susan do you sell Mcmurtie hybrids or is that just from your own private collection as i'm after getting my hands on some.

Hey Davey,

Janis Ruksans sells some of his hybrids too. Here's the link:

http://www.reticulatas.com/HTML%20Pages/Janis.html

[daveyp1970]

Cheers Wim i will be ordering of Janis in  month or so but its always nice to have as many suppliers at your fingertips.

[Gail]

Some stunning pics there!

I bought this little pot and realise from the pics here that the bulbs should in fact be below the soil which I will rectify later.  How deep should the bulbs be?  I have repotted in a larger pot though.  They are just labelled Iris Reticulata.  Help with ID appreciated please.

Hi Indigo,
I think sensibly nobody wants to commit themselves to an ID on your iris - it is really difficult from a photo as the colours rarely come true and as you will have gathered from this thread plants can be mixed up in cultivation.  Yours looks like the one I have as Pixie, a good rich purple but that is not to say my Pixie is correct!
As to depth; I was just rereading an article in a past British Iris Society yearbook by Sidney Linnegar who grows reticulatas extremely well.  He recommends planting 20cm deep when outdoors or in bulb frames and generally uses 'long tom' type pots but does grow the hybrids five bulbs in a 15cm pot.  He feeds fortnightly with a nitrogen based fertiliser from just before flowering until the leaves stop growing.

[Hristo]

Nice greenhouse specimens Arthur.
Flowering yesterday ( today the frame  is back under snow! ) Iris 'Clairette'.

[Gail]

My 'Alida' flowering now.  Sadly the best clump is under the duck and once Bendicks has sat on something it tends to stay squashed!