Iris Information

You have some Iris and you are confused about when to cut them back.

In the winter, once the weather has cooled down and the sun is not out as long, you can trim the fans to about 5 inches.

If you do it too soon, the plant will not get as much nutrition from photosynthesis to promote the next years growth.

At any other time you can remove leaves when they become damaged, brown, or diseased.

When thinning them, try to dig them up for transplanting in the late fall or early winter about the time that you normally would cut them back for winter.

When transplanting iris, you can dig them up, then trim back the greens to about 3-4 inches.

This will help give the plant more energy to root once they make it back into the ground.

When you replant, plant them at least 8 inches apart. Lay the rhizome horizontally in the shallow hole that you dug.

Barely cover with soil and mulch well for the first couple of winters.