646 



GINSENG 



GLADIOLUS 



carminative and tonic properties, the root is with us 

 seldom used except as a demulcent. The reverence in 

 which it is held, and the high price that it commands in 

 China, led to extensive search for a substitute, which 

 resulted in the discovery in IVlfi of American Ginseng, 

 Panax quoujuefoHum, near Montreal, Canada. This 

 root was favorably received by the Chinese, and soon 

 became an important article of export. During the past 

 40 years the price of American Ginseng has advanced 

 nearly 700 per cent, but owing to the energetic hunt for 

 the root, to the destruction of forests and to the gather- 

 ing of plants at improper times, the wild supply has 

 greatly decreased. With the advancing prices and the 

 diminishing supply came experiments in Ginseng culti- 

 vation, most of which failed through ignorance of the 

 plant's peculiarities. The seed ripens in Sept. If dry it 

 will not germinate until the second year, but if fresh and 

 properly kept nearly all the seeds w^ill germinate the first 

 season. The soil must be a light, friable loam, free from 

 stones, etc., rich in humus and well drained; the plants 

 must be well supplied with shade and moisture. Culti- 

 vated Ginseng already commands a considerably higher 

 price than the wild root, and, though no returns can be 

 expected from a plantation until it is 3 or 4 years old, the 

 industry is found to be profitable by the men that have 

 given it careful attention. 



Ginseng beds can be located in orchards, gardens, or 

 woods, where the roots may remain without danger of 

 deterioration for several years after they first attain 

 marketable size. The roots are so valuable that they 

 are likely to be stolen, and beds should, therefore, be 

 placed where they can be guarded. ^ q Kains. 



For further information on Ginseng, send to Div. of 

 Publications, Dept. of Agriculture, Washington, D, C, 

 for Bulletin No. 16 of the Div. of Botany, revised by 

 M. G. Kains in 1898, or consult Kains' Ginseng, its cult., 

 etc.. Orange Judd Co., 1899. ^_ jl^ 



GLADIOLUS (diminutive of Latin gladiusy a sword, 

 from the shape of the Ivs. of the first-described species). 

 IridAcecB. Gladioli are amongst the most popular of all 

 garden plants, and particularly of the class known as 

 summer-flowering bulbs, ranking in popularity with 

 cannas, dahlias, lilies and iris, and having probably 

 no other rivals. They are also the most important, com- 

 mercially, of all the "Cape bulbs." 



About 140 species of cormous herbs, which bear lily- 

 form fls. in spikes at the summit of a scape. Fl. more 

 or less tubular, the tube usually funnel-shaped (enlarg- 

 ing upwards); segments 6, more or less unequal, 

 strongly narrowed or even clawed at the base, the upper 

 ones often hooded or roofed over the opening or mouth 

 of the flower; stamens 3, inserted on the tube; stigmas 

 3, on a long style : ovary 3-loculed. Fig. 911. Monogr. 

 by Baker, Irideffi, pp. 198-229 (1892). 



About 15 of the species are natives of Europe and 

 western Asia. A few have been discovered on the moun- 

 tains of tropical Africa. The larger part of the species 

 are South African, however (Cape Colony and Natal), 

 and of these species the habitat is not mentioned in the 

 following synopsis. The Europe-Asian species are little 

 cultivated in this countrj'. Some of them are hardy. 

 The S. African species, variously hybridized, have 

 given rise to the numerous and excellent garden strains. 

 There are semi-double forms. l^ -q^ ^ 



I. THE CULTURE OF GLADIOLL 

 A. From the amateur'' s point of view. 

 The essentials of Gladiolus culture can be told in a 

 sentence: the corms should be planted as early in 

 spring as the soil can be fitted ; they flower the same 

 season in July and August, and can be stored over win- 

 ter in any cool, dry cellar that will keep potatoes. Late 

 spring frosts do not penetrate the soil deep enough to 

 hurt the early planted corms. The blooming season can 

 be easily prolonged until frost by successive plantings 

 from April to July 4. The flowers are excellent for 

 cutting, and last a week in water. Some varieties need 

 staking, but stakes are objectionable on general princi- 

 ples, even when neat and slender. Seedlings are easily 

 raised, and the process is described in the next para- 

 graph. Gladioli are easily forced to flower in Novem- 



ber and December, as the conns can be kept dormant by 

 the simplest kind of cold storage. It is common for 

 florists to hold some corms in a cool place until August; 

 then plant them in boxes of rich soil 4-5 in. deep, and 

 keep the boxes outdoors until frost. After frost-time 

 the corms are brought into a cool greenhouse, where they 

 flower within two months. New corms form above the 

 old one, and bloom the next season {Fig. 912). Cormels 

 or "spawn" also form on offshoots: these bloom in two 

 or three years. l^ g^ g 



AA. From the commercial point of view. 

 The culture of Gladioli is very easy, and can be con- 

 ducted under nearly any of the conditions suitable for 

 potatoes. Gladioli succeed best in a sandy loam which 

 is retentive of moisture. For successful commercial 

 culture it is essential that such soil conditions are ob- 

 tainable. Planting should be commenced as early in the 

 spring as the proper working of the soil will permit. 

 Such preparation of the soil as puts it in a loose, friable 

 condition will answer. Probably the ideal soil is a sod, 

 fall plowed and then most thoroughly worked in the 

 spring. Strong, fresh stable manure should be avoided. 

 If soil is not sufficiently rich in plant-food it is best to 

 use all strong manures on a previous season's crop of 

 some other kind. Any complete fertilizer is beneficial 

 when thoroughly worked through the soil, at the rate of 

 (JOO to 1,000 pounds per acre. The ground being pre- 

 pared, it should be furrowed 4 in. deep and from 24 to 30 

 in. apart, according to method of cultivation. If fine, 

 round bulbs are to be grown, and the stock for planting 

 exceeds 1% in. in diameter, it will be necessary to place 

 the bulbs right side up in the fiirrow by hand, either in 

 single or double rows 2 in. apart. Bulbs of lesser size 

 can be scattered as evenly as possible along the furrow, 

 with an average of 10 or 12 to the foot of furrow. Clean 

 culture throughout the growing season is essential. 

 Cutting the spike of flowers is a help to increasing the 

 size of the bulbs- Four months is sufficient for the 

 growth and maturity of the bulb. To harvest, loosen the 

 soil and lift the biilbs by their tops, and lay on the 

 ground to dry off and ripen. Should weather permit 



they can be entirely ripened out of doors. Cut the tops 

 off close to the bulb, pulling off the old bulbs and roots, 

 and place in thin layers in crates and store in a cool, 

 dry place. If circumstances require, the tops can be 

 trimmed off at once on lifting, and the bulbs taken under 

 cover for cleaning and drying. 



Gladioli are increased in three ways : (1) by natural 

 division from the parent conn; (2) by seed; (3) by the 

 small corms growing at the base of the new corm. 



