Eileen Hollander will give a presentation titled “Louisiana Iris Propagation by Seed and Rhizome” at 9:30 a.m., Saturday, July 7, at the East Bank Regional Library, 4747 W. Napoleon, Metairie.

This event is free of charge and is open to the public. There is no registration.

There are two principal ways to propagate Louisiana irises: by seed, or by division/cutting from the original rhizome.

Hollander says that irises can become congested over time, which tends to inhibit flowering. This can be remedied by lifting and dividing their rhizomes to give them more space. Gardeners should wait until flowering is over before dividing the iris clump, discarding any old, woody rhizomes and replanting only young, healthy plants into freshly-prepared soil.

Hollander will provide a short PowerPoint presentation followed by a hands-on demonstration with each participant taking home a Louisiana Iris seed pod to practice what they have learned.

Eileen Hollander is a native of New Orleans. She is Master Gardeners of Greater New Orleans Louisiana Iris and has served as Louisiana Super Plants/Enabling Garden project manager. She is involved in the Pearl River County Mississippi Master Gardeners and has served as its Blueberry Trials project manager. She is also a Tree Trouper for Jefferson and Orleans Parishes. Her specialty areas include Louisiana irises, Louisiana Super Plants/Enabling Gardens, bulbs, native plants, trees, wetlands delineation, and aquatic gardening.

For more information regarding this presentation, contact Chris Smith, Manager of Adult Programming for the library, at 504-889-8143 or wcsmith@jefferson.lib.la.us.