How to Remove Mulch in Transplanting Irises

Every gardener needs good tools. These are 2 of my favorite tools. A rounded point shovel and a good sharp spade. Both of these tools work differently. This one has more of a scooping getting underneath the root system. This one has more of a good cutting to actually divide and cut the plant. The first thing I'm going to do is excavate around this iris. I'm going to pull back the mulch first to expose the soil around the plant. You can actually take this spade and just start gently shaving away the mulch, scooping that away, and getting all around the edge. The mulch here was put around the plant to help keep weeds down and to help hold in moisture retention. I'm doing just about an inch removal all the way around. You can see that I've exposed even more of the iris there. The next thing is I'm going to come out about 4 or 5 inches away from the plant and I'm going to start to use my foot and push down. I'm going to give it a little wiggle. I'm just going to go all the way around and make a little incision all the way around the base of this plant.