Autumn 2020 Update

This is a copy of the Autumn edition of our twice-yearly newsletter. If you would like to receive this please do feel free to subscribe.

We have all been through an extraordinary period in the last six months. It is now clear that we are going to have to get used to living with the Coronavirus which is here to stay for the foreseeable future.

Our gardens have become ever more important to us. They provide the means to maintain our morale, replenish our spirits and offer a future, a refuge beyond current events. They are also vital to us emotionally and provide the means to keep fit and active.

If ever there was a time to garden and find a way to invest in a future, surely it is now.

Thanks

We have had a great response to our irises and wanted to say thank you for supporting us as a small independent grower.

Time and again, customers have told us that they have made a point of singling out small nurseries, and this has been hugely appreciated during a period when all Plant Shows have been abandoned.

Thank you again for your support.

2020 Flowering Season

Reports from around the country about how our customers’ irises have performed this year have varied a lot. In some parts of southern England, there were late frosts when the plants were about to flower, and this damaged some of the flower spikes.

Many of us further north have enjoyed a great season, with incredible weather in April and May, extending into June.

Due to lockdown restrictions I spent this period in Cumbria and was unable to see my irises flowering in Norfolk and this put an end to further hybridising. Not ideal, but there is always next year.

Website Changes

We have spent time this year updating the website in response to feedback from our customers. This has gone down well, with comments that the site is user friendly, easy to navigate, great visually etc.

Specifically, we have been trying to improve our search ranking through use of the right ‘keywords’. The feedback we receive from our customers whom we contact after placing orders, has been very valuable.

There are further changes planned later this year that will improve access from mobile phones. We see this as essential. By and large customers find the site easy to use and they like the clear images and plant descriptions.

Our focus remains to make sure that finding the site becomes as easy as possible and that our rankings are competitive with other iris suppliers.

Grouping Plants by Colour

One of the great benefits of the ‘Dodsworth’ irises are that they are largely of a single colour, or shades of the same colour. This allows you to mix colours and experiment with different colour combinations.

Our customers seem to have really taken this on board and are already buying different combinations of irises; this is really encouraging.

I have just planted a large circular iris border for my daughter in the North of England that includes quadrants of ‘Hot’ and ‘Cool’ colours, with ‘Softs’ interspersed within each colour group.

It will take two years before it becomes fully established, but I will keep you posted on progress.

Extending the Flowering Season

By including irises with different ‘bloom periods’ in the mix, remember that you can extend the flowering period from the normal 3-4 weeks to at least 4-6 weeks.

If you are keen to make the most of the flowering season, make sure you have a representative selection of ‘Early’, ‘Mid’ and ‘Late’ blooming irises.

In this context I always recommend Sherwood Pink, a great iris in its own right, but one that flowers at least a week later than anything else in my garden.

Late Orders

We are still taking iris orders and the weather is still very mild.  Now is your chance to place any late orders for 2020 as you plan your garden for 2021. During the last six months I have been sending out irises once per month.

The next delivery will go out later in October. The ground is still warm, and in some parts of the country we have had some rain, I appreciate that it is still very dry in the south and east of England.

We have reasonable stocks of most varieties. Why not experiment and try a new mix of colours, or just add some new varieties to your existing iris collection?

Shop Now