Hundreds of rhizomes have been harvested and made available for sale during the 2022 MVIS Iris Rhizome Sale which will be at the Mesilla Valley Mall, Saturday, Sept. 10 and Sunday, Sept. 11 during mall hours.
The Mesilla Valley Iris Society celebrated its 50th Anniversary,1971-2021, by hosting the American Iris Society convention in April. More than 240 people from across the states and some from Canada descended on Las Cruces to learn more about their iris craft and tour iris farms and gardens throughout the area.
Many of the hybridizers who submitted their samples for the event have given permission to have the iris rhizomes and sell them for the benefit of the local society. The sale usually has between 100 and 150 varieties of iris for sale as rhizomes, underground plant stems that will send out new roots. This year, there will be closer to 675 varieties available because hybridizers left the group a legacy of iris.
“All the irises are donated from the membership,” said local club president Cynthia Wilson. “This year many of the hybridizers left their iris and did not ask for them to be returned. As long as we sell out of the garden and don’t do any mail order, we can sell their iris so we have thousands of extra iris.”
Members of the society have been busy digging up the rhizomes from the area gardens they were displayed during the conference including the Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum, Calhoun Flower Farm and Blue J Iris Nursery.
“This is an opportunity to add many unique irises to your garden,” Wilson said.
There will be Iris Society members on hand to answer questions about growing and variety. Photos of the blooms will be posted. Prices for the iris vary depending on the age of their development.
“That’s the age when they went into the ground,” Wilson said. “That’s the iris’s birthday.”
