irises

The stump of an iris (it looks like a miniature, wrinkled potato) is called a rizhome. It is "planted" (placed is probably a better word) where the top of it is even with the soil. Any attached roots should be facing downward. Bulbs, rizhomes, whatever you want to call them, should be planted about 12-14 inches apart. If you want excessive flowering, lightly fertilize in the spring. Otherwise, they just sit there until 4 years later when you need to thin them out. The long green leaves are left alone, even after the flowering stops, until the tops start turning brown (in Sept or Oct). Then you can cut them down to about 6". That's it.
They're actually very easy yard plants.

And our topic tomorrow? Straw bale gardening. With pictures!