Meanwhile make sure that you have cut back the dried blooms on all the spring and early summer flowers. Flowering bushes should have been trimmed when they finished blooming, so if you haven’t done that, do it now.  Leave the greenery on the perennials and bushes so that it will continue to absorb the sunshine to make and store energy for next year’s blooms.

Some plants will bloom again. Bearded Iris and Siberian Iris need to be split every 3 or so years.  First, around the 4th of July or a little later, cut all the Bearded Iris plants down to about 4–6 inches and cut off all the dead part of the stalks. Dig them up, divide them, throw away the bad part of the rhizome. Shake off all the dirt. When I do this I have a dishpan of 9 parts water and 1 part bleach in which I put the rhizomes for just about 5–6 minutes in case they have any live critters or fungus in among the leaves, then into a pan of plain water. I have already planned and prepared their new bed.  When I get 6 or 7 ready, I plant them. Remember that Iris need to have part of the rhizome above the dirt so that it can absorb sun (energy for growth).  Siberian Iris need to be dug up in clumps.  Each clump can then be divided into several and planted in their new bed.  Daylily is  another plant that should be split every 3–4 years. Start digging and splitting them when they begin to die back. 

What’s buggin’ you? Plant these to repel bugs...