US (CA): It's iris time at Sun Valley
Sun Valley grows a few crops at both their Oxnard and Arcata farms and Iris is a big one. In warmer Oxnard, their iris is grown in open fields October through May, and in cool, coastal Arcata, they grow iris in hoop houses year-round. This parallel production gives a steady supply of fresh iris, especially during spring as both farms take advantage of the perfect iris weather.
When summer brings its heat, it will be too hot for field iris in Oxnard, but the cool and foggy Arcata summers create the perfect environment, so come summer, Sun Valley will be growing iris in both hoops and the field. Frosty nights are few and far between, and there’s sufficient sun during the day without the oppressive heat that can cause plants to go dormant.
When iris bulbs arrive from Holland, they are stored in heated rooms (heat keeps the bulbs dormant). Once they're ready to start planting, the bulbs are woken by cooling them, and then planted in fresh, fertile soil.
When it comes to harvesting Iris, timing is everything. The heads must be full, which means the tip of the iris will still be sheathed by green leaves, but contains color on the inside. The sheath keeps the iris petals safe during transport, and this picking point is considered the "window pane"-- the iris is still closed, but ready to bloom within a few days.
Read more at the Sun Valley blog