Hello folks,
I am in the process of digging up all my iris--this could take weeks--to wipe out iris borer. I have found borer in almost every clump. So far they seem to be confined to the leaf and rhizome and I've found every size from very tiny to big fat ones, but they don't seem to have progressed to the brown pupa stage in the soil.
Instead of replanting them, I am putting them in pots without soil for a couple of weeks, to give any that I missed a chance to grow. Then I'll examine them closely again before re-planting. It shouldn't hurt them to be out of the ground in a shady place for that long, should it? I'll give them a light spray with water once in a while if it doesn't rain.
Do you think that this will break the cycle and render my garden borer-free? I am in southern Ontario.
Thanks, Nancy Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada