How to Trim a Double Iris for Reblooming

Most iris plants flower once yearly in late spring or early summer. Though the foliage remains green and attractive all summer, the flowers are something to be enjoyed for only a short time. Unlike the majority of iris varieties, double blooming, or reblooming iris, flowers twice a year. Proper pruning and cutting of the old flowers, leaves and roots ensures the plant has access to the energy necessary to support the double flower season each year.

Shears
5-10-5 fertilizer
Knife

Instructions

- 1
  Cut back the old iris flower stalks after they finish their first flush of blooms. Remove the stalks at the base, but don't cut back the foliage.
- 2
  Fertilize the iris with a 5-10-5 blend fertilizer or other phosphorus-rich blend after cutting back the plants. Apply the fertilizer at the label recommended rate for your iris bed size.
- 3
  Cut back the second set of late summer blooms after the flowers wilt and die. Removing the blooms prevents seed formation, which allows the plant to store energy for healthy root, leaf and flower bud production instead of for seed set.
- 4
  Prune the foliage after it dies back naturally, usually after the first fall frost. Cut the foliage off to within 1 to 2 inches of the soil surface.
- 5
  Divide the iris after spring flowering every three to four years, or when the plant begins producing less flowers. Dig up the root rhizomes, and cut them apart into 2- to 4-inch pieces, leaving a fan of leaves attached to each piece. Cut back the leaves to a 6-inch height. Replant the rhizomes 12 to 18 inches apart.

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