Divide Pond Iris plants now on marginal pond shelf:
- Divide pond Iris plants once they have flowered.
- Some Iris clumps may need cutting apart with a knife
- Have new mesh baskets and clay soil ready.
- Do not cut too small - 2-3 growth heads per new section.
- Cut down in height to 15cm/6" above water surface level so that they will re-establish more quickly.
- Add a Feed balls for Aquatic plants to encourage regrowth and flowering next year.
- Firm down well and replace in pond on top shelf until roots appear through the mesh basket.
- Doing this now should produce a rooted plant before Winter.
- Do not divide every clump of Iris in the same year - spread across 3 years in rotation.
- Leave some emergent pond Iris untouched so dragonfly and damselfly larvae can use these leaves to climb up when they emerge from the pond to become adults.
Iris in a container pond:
- If this container pond Iris has outgrown the basket divide it in the same way as above
- Discard older sections or make a second basket to sit in another position in the support grid.
For more details on how to divide pond Iris plants please see our Tips and Advice page - Plant Propagation
Divide moist loving Iris sibirica or Iris ensata clumps too:
- Lift and divide clumps after flowering is finished
- Discard the sparse central area.
- Split the remaining clump into large sections.
- Cut down in height for stability.
- Replace the areas of the clump with plenty of shoots back into the soil with additional compost from the garden compost heap to replenish the nutrients recently used in flowering.
- Doing this now allows the plant to root down well and recover before Winter.