Description
Louisiana irises are evergreen and add interest to the pond throughout the year.
Top tip: Louisiana irises need room to grow and a larger planting basket provides more stability. Tall, evergreen leaves make the plant vulnerable to the wind and in a small basket they can easily be blown into the bottom of the pond.
Flowers: June/July Tall flower spears produce successive flowering.
Height of plant: 30-70cm from crown with one spear of flowers growing from each rhizome.
Propagation: Grows from a woody rhizome (thick woody stem under the soil) with many offshoots that can readily be separated and grown on. The root system expands rapidly in the Spring and after flowering, which is the best time to divide.
How to plant: Plant into a 5lt planting basket using heavy garden loam or Westland Aquatic Soil and place on a shelf in the pond. Fill the planting basket with soil so that the crown of the plant – from where the roots grow down and the shoots grow up – is level with the rim of the basket. Hold the plant securely and fill in with soil all around the roots, press the soil down very firmly but being careful not to damage any new shoots. Fill the planting crate to just below rim. For aesthetic purposes, the soil can then be top dressed with no more than 1cm of pea gravel.
Recommended planting depth: Position on the shelf so that the soil in the basket is 0-20cm below the water surface. The planting depth is always measured from soil surface to water surface, not including any gravel top dressing. Raise the basket on slabs or bricks to achieve the recommended planting depth. All plants are supplied bare-rooted which is cheaper for you and less costly to our environment.
