What's in a name?

What a gorgeous iris!!! Back in 2008, this beauty bloomed in the field. The problem was, it was mixed in a group of others and looked nothing like them. Who was this lovely lady? I sent photos to all of my wholesalers inquiring, some I never heard back from, others had no idea either. Keeping track of plants/rhizomes can be a tricky business! As soon as we dig iris, before we even move our feet, we use a sharpie marker and write the name on the leaf. This really helps with mistakes. We also only dig from rhizomes that have bloomed. At Earthworks we have over 800 varieties of iris. It's a daily trip threw all of the rows everyday to see who's blooming and to verify they are correct. So I pull my wagon, with 3 huge binders each with a information sheet and photo of the iris. Over half I now can recognize, some I have never seen bloom yet.

Hopefully we have not mixed up any, but I would never say any method is full proof. Too bad we can't dig when they are blooming, but doesn't work that way. So who was the beauty, the one I picked to be my all-time favorite? It died the following year, bummer! Iris that cannot be fully identified, are sold as "unknowns" and usually cheaper. Some folks care about the name, others don't. I can put up with a nameless iris, if it's this awesome!

Windowsill Transplants

Perfect picture of 'etoliation.'
What is etoliation? A disorder created when inadequate light is offered to plants, so they are stretching to reach more light. No, this is not good. Short, stocky transplants are the best, over long lanky plants. Taller, is okay if the main stem is stocky and thick. The sketch is of tomato transplants. The one on the left is perfect in stockiness, perfect in plant to container ratio, and plenty big for the garden assuming it has been hardened off. The one on the left could grow in that pot about 7-10 more days and still have a good ratio w/o getting rootbound. The 2 on the right, well....I would definitely plant on their side (trench planting) in the garden, or repot in a deeper pot, sinking them up to the lowest set of leaves (seedling leaves) for about 2 weeks.The best solution is to avoid this in the first place. You need to provide supplemental light, a window sill is not adequate. Using florescent lights is best. You should keep the light 4" above the top of the plants. So either your light should be adjustable (mine are on a chain system) or raise and lower your plant trays, utilizing blocks of wood or inverted plant trays. Light starved plants are also weaker and thinner, less likely to survive the transition outdoors. While under the lights using a small oscillating fan and 'tickling' the plants everyday, will also simulate outdoor conditions and help your plants to grow thicker. You can however avoid all of these issues by purchasing your vegetable transplants from Earthworks Gardens.

=)