Blue Spring

I have taken a major position in blue.

This is the iris that re-blooms - I have had it on my Thanksgiving table. But the year we had water rationing and I didn't feed (didn't want to have to keep all that new growth hydrated) it didn't re-bloom. So now I feed. Organic, E.B. Stone or Dr Earth please - feed the soil, the soil feeds the plants. 

It's not really this turquoise, but it's fragrant and spectacular.

There is a darker Tradescantia with lime green foliage - the lime makes the blue pop.

There is an Echium I got from Annie's Annuals hanging over the pool. She has seriously cool stuff, and she usually has an open house on Mother's Day. Check it out.

There is columbine from seeds given to me by dear Carol Read...

...and just when the blue seems too much there is a splash...

...of orange. This is Pat Austen, a David Austen rose. Like a splash of cool water for your eyes. Gertrude Jekyll, the fabulous English garden designer wrote about having a one-color garden, and how just a touch of the opposite color (on a color wheel, silly. You weren't paying attention in Art class, were you?) will make both colors more intense. But this is the height of spring, and even my mistakes look fabulous. I'll be digging them up later, and sweating and swearing. But not today. Today I'm breathless. It is too beautiful, cool and fresh. Go outside! 

Dividing Iris

The best advice I got about iris was to divide them between the fourth of July and Labor Day. I procrastinate (as you know if you've read the chapter I Don't Want It Perfect I Want It Tuesday in my book. So I am dividing iris. Probably won't finish by Labor Day but oh well.

They start out looking like this:

the garden's version of a bad hair day. I slide a spade next to them and lever them out of the ground - 

then I pull them apart, keeping the healthy plump roots with a fan of leaves attached. Wrinkled up roots like this:

get thrown away. Only fat plump rhizomes (the brown part) with a good fan of leaves (the green part) or a fat white bud that will turn into a clump of leaves (you'll know it when you see it) get saved.

I cut the leaves back to about a foot, and because the place where you break the roots apart is moist and susceptible to all sorts of fungal and insect invasion, I leave them to dry for an hour or so. Then I plant.

 This is what they look like when they have been divided.I space them about a foot apart with the leaf fans facing out. Not too deep please - they will rot. The rhizome should be just covered with soil.

 You can see which way they will grow - don't point them at each other. Think siblings and keep them from squabbling over space.

A generous dusting of fertilizer on top, a deep soak, then leave them alone. They are tough, they do best in full sun and not too much water. I prefer all one color massed in a bed - I hate that spotty look. But it's your garden, so if you're into spots, knock yourself out.

This one is Victoria Falls and it re-blooms. I am looking for a photo. Last year I had iris to cut for the table at Thanksgiving. This year? We'll see.