Iris may need a year to rest after transplant

Q. In the fall of 2008, I transplanted irises that I received through a Freecycle member. He had divided his irises and had many to give away.Last year, 2009, the green came up very nice and was nice and healthy looking all summer, but never produced a bud or flowers. I cut them back in the fall and so far they are coming up nicely again this spring.Do you think they will flower this year? If not, why? They are in a mostly sunny place - soil has a lot of clay, but coreopsis did OK there and clematis does well there.A. The best time to divide irises is just after they finish blooming. This gives them time to re-establish roots before the end of the growing season, and does not disrupt the blooming cycle. While irises can be divided any time during the growing season you may lose bloom for a year. If you plan to divide in the fall, allow at least six weeks of growing season for the divisions to establish roots and hold the plants in the ground during the freeze-thaw cycles of winter.Unlike flowers borne of a bulb, the iris rhizome (corm) must be planted close to the surface so that the top half of the rhizome is slightly above the ground. This is especially true for bearded iris.Since your irises were transplanted from another yard or location, it isn't uncommon for the first year to offer no blooms. Many times they are not strong enough and will wait a year to build the reserves it needs to flower. Give your healthy plant a little time to get used to its new home.Q. Years back, when I reached into the soil, I remember the soil filled with fat earthworms. You could always see the robins yanking them out of the ground, especially after a good rain. For the last few seasons, I have seen very few. I have read that earthworms are beneficial to the soil. What could be causing this?A. Earthworms benefit soil and plants in many ways: These little workers break down organic material and extrude the remains in the soil, which in turn, the plants can absorb. Earthworms also loosen the soil, which makes it easier for the plant roots to grow and the air and water to circulate in the soil. Finally, they increase the soil's water retention capability and bring the mineral and other nutrients that are located deep in the soil to the top layer, which are then absorbed by the plants.There could be several factors for the decline in worms. Earthworms have a voracious appetite. If you remove the food source then they just pack up and go looking for another source to quench their hunger or die. When they die, their bodies' protein decomposes into nitrogen that is added to the soil. This benefits the plants for a short period of time.To provide earthworms with food, organic material must be added continuously to the soil. This organic material can come from the yard such as leaves and grass clippings. It can also be fine mulches such as cypress mulch. Another source is kitchen scraps as long as they have no acid or oils in them. Fruit and vegetable peels, egg shells, and coffee and tea grounds are great stuff to feed the earthworms.Finally, don't use pesticides or too much fertilizer; that will make the soil uninhabitable for earthworms, as well as the other organisms that create healthy soil.bull; Provided by Mary Boldan and Donna Siemro, University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners. Send questions to Ask a Master Gardener, c/o Friendship Park Conservatory, 395 W. Algonquin Road, Des Plaines, IL 60016, (847) 298-3502 or via e-mail to cookcountymg@sbcglobal.net.