The oncocyclus iris are native to Palestine and other areas with long, dry, hot summers. Cold winters are mentioned, but I am sure those referred to could not compare to our Minnesota winters.
Except for an occasional dry spell during the summer, we have much more moisture than the oncocyclus iris is supposed to be able to tolerate.
So it was with a few misgivings that I purchased my first oncocyclus iris. I started with a few Iris Susiana, also known as the mourning iris, because of its black effect.
The first year I grew the irises in pots because I did not want to take any chances of losing them due to our cold winter. In the bottom of 10-inch glazed pots, I placed a handful of broken clay pot chips for drainage.
I used sandy soil, adding one ounce of lime and one-half ounce of bonemeal for each pot of soil. I was advised to make up this mixture for at least a month before setting the plants in the banks. I spread the roots out well and covered the plants with 2″ inches of soil, one plant to the pot.
Putting Pots In A Dark Corner
Glazed pots were used because there is a minimum of moisture loss. The pots were set in a pan of water until the moisture showed through the topsoil. Then the pots were put away in a dark corner of the basement.
This was the first part of October. I watched them for signs of drying out and gave each plant about 4 ounces of water every three weeks.
I brought them upstairs the first week in March and set them in the darkest corner of my living room, where we maintain a daytime temperature of 70° and a night temperature of 60° degrees Fahrenheit.
The new growth came up through the soil in two weeks. After two more weeks, when the leaves had grown to about 6″ inches, I moved the plants to a sunny south window. Seven weeks after I brought them from the basement, I was rewarded with a gorgeous bloom from each plant.
After the iris finished blooming, which was entirely too soon for anyone who has seen these beauties, I let them dry off in a sunny upstairs west window.
Fortified with one successful method behind me, I decided to try a few in the garden. I used the same soil and glazed pots, choosing the highest spot in my garden.
Leaving 2″ inches of the pot above the ground to prevent any excess rain from pouring in, I built a frame of 2″ by 4″ lumber to support a three-by-six storm window, which is kept over the plants at all times.
Raising Plants In Bloom
When the plants are in total growth and bloom, I have the storm window raised 2′ feet above the ground, but I keep it only 4″ inches above the plants all the rest of the time.
This distance allows air circulation but does not allow rain to enter. Snow blows in during the winter, but it doesn’t melt until spring, when the plants need water.
This may not make any difference, but I constantly water the plants with rain water or water from a small lake we have on our farm.
I planted my first oncocyclus iris in 1953 and have not lost any. I have had to divide the plants several times, so I feel that the oncocyclus iris can be raised successfully in our Minnesota climate.
It may not be commercially profitable, but it certainly pays off in pleasure for the gardener.
Recently I have heard that dolomite is supposed to be even better than lime in that it produces a more lush growth of leaves. I intend to experiment with it on half my plants when I set them out this fall.
44659 by Frances Drake