GLADIOLUS. 119 
the fertilizer distributor, after which we scatter the 
corms in the drill at the rate of from ten to twenty to the 
foot, then cover with the same implement that is used 
for corn or potatoes, and the work is complete. When 
the leaves begin to break through the surface, we go 
over the field with a fine wire-tooth harrow; this effect- 
ually gets rid of the first crop of weeds, after which the 
cultivator is kept going. In a season prolific of weeds 
we have been compelled to go over the ground ten times. 
Under any circumstances, we go through the rows with 
cultivator after every rain, whether there are weeds to 
kill or not. This keeps the soil in the best possible con- 
dition, keeps down the weeds, and saves an immense 
amount of hand labor. We commence to take up our 
corms about the middle of September, using a subsoi! 
plow to lift them; then they are taken from the rows, 
the tops cut close to the corm, and are then put away in 
racks in the cellar, eight feet deep, with plenty of space 
for air between, each rack containing about five hundred 
flowering corms. This plan of cultivation and storing 
of the corms we consider the best that can be adopted, 
and the nearer it can be imitated in the garden, the 
nearer the grower will reach perfect success. 
Soils for Gladiolus.—What soils are best is an 
oft-repeated question, to which we must reply that, as 
far as this is concerned, the best is the one we have. ‘The 
Gladiolus dislikes a heavy clay, but will thrive in almost 
any other, its preference being for a light loam, or a 
moist, sandy soil. If the ground be heavy, work it 
thoroughly and plant shallow, not more than two inches 
below the surface. If the soil be light, work in the 
same manner, only cover the corms with four inches of 
soil. It is best to use what is termed sod-ground when 
practicable, or to plant in soil that has been heavily 
manured for a previous crop. Fresh manure will prove 
injurious. It is also important, in planting, not to 
