Gladiolus 



( 369 ) 



Gladiolus 



GLADIOLUS. (CORN FLAG. SVVOKD LILY.) 



Description. The Gladiolus is so familiar to all 

 that a detailed description is unnecessary. It will 

 be sufficient to say that it belongs to the urt/. 

 Irideie ; that there are over 130 species ; that it 

 has a conn, as its " bulb " is called ; and that it 

 produces its flowers in spikes. Our garden Gladioli 

 are principally hybrids, but a number of tin; species 

 are of much beauty, and will give considerable 

 pleasure to those who grow them. A selection of 

 the best or most interesting of these species is 

 appended. All the Gladioli are useful as cut 

 flowers, and if cut when the lower flowers begin to 

 open the remainder will last much longer in water. 



Propagation. The original corm dies annually, 

 but another is produced in its place, and sometimes 

 more than one, which can be separated before 

 planting time. The principal method for increas- 

 ing any named or choice varieties is by means of 

 the cormlets or " spawn " produced at the base of 

 the larger conns. These are grown in small beds, 

 and eventually attain to flowering size. They 

 sho ild be lifted annually in a similar manner to 

 the larger ones. Where a corm shows more than 

 one " eye " on the top, it may be cut into as many 

 pieces as there are eyes, just like a Potato, and 

 each piece will produce a stem. The cut must be 

 right through the corm to the bottom, and it is 

 desirable, though not necessary, to put some 

 powdered charcoal on the cut portion. New varie- 

 ties are raised from seeds sown in beds in the 

 open or in pans under glass. 



Soil. The Gladiolus may be grown on any goo:! 

 soil enriched with manure. Some reoommend a 

 light soil, but capital spikes and good conns arc 

 produced on heavier land. 



Other Cultural Points. Only a few Gladioli, 

 principally natives of Europe and Asia Minor, are 

 hardy in the greater pirtion of these islands. The 

 others are best treated as half-hardy, that is, lifted 

 in autumn when the leaves become yellow, and 

 stored in a cool place where frost cannot reach 

 them until the time for replanting comes round. 

 The cormlets should not be taken off until that 

 time. After lifting, the conns ought to be dried 

 slightly in an airy place out of the sun, and then 

 placed in drawers or, in the case of a small collec- 

 tion, in paper bags. A good number of the early- 

 flowering varieties are hardy once they become 

 established, if left in the open ground, but for the 

 first winter or two it is more prudent to cover them 

 with 2" or 3" of Cocoanut fibre refuse or ashes. 



Growing for Exhibition. The conns may be 

 planted in lines, the plants being about 1' apart. 

 The beds ought, if possible, to be prepared in 

 autumn, a good addition of cow or horse manure 

 being made at that time. The proper depth to 

 plant is about 3" above the top of the corm, and a 

 little sharp sand may be placed about it when the 

 soil is of a heavy nature. For the decoration of 

 mixed borders the corms may be closer, and look 

 best in groups. From the beginning of March to 

 the end of May is the most suitable time to plant, 

 but in cold districts it, is often desirable to place 

 the later varieties in boxes, like those used for 

 early Potatoes, with some soil about the conns, 

 and to start them into growth before planting them 

 out, this being done with the soil adhering to the 

 roots, which must not be injured. The plants 

 ought to be secured to stakes as soon as they have 

 grown sufficiently high, and be kept attended t<> in 

 this respect as the spikes extend. In poor soil the 



beds may be mulched with well-rotted manure 

 when the Gladioli are a little above the surface. 

 Some apply artificial manures or water occasion- 

 ally with liquid manure, but on a somewhat heavy 

 yellow loam Mr. J. Burrell, a noted grower, finds 

 that both of these give doubtful results. Flowers 

 for exhibition are covered with a box with a glass 

 front, the lower part of which is shaded as the 

 blooms at the base of the spike open. For beds 

 and borders good strains of seedlings will give 



Photo : Cuseell < Company, Ltd. 



GLADIOLUS MRS. WOOD (see p. 370). 



many line flowers, some of these being equal to 

 named varieties. Gladioli are very ornamental in 

 pots, one conn for a (>" pot being sufficient, except 

 for the smaller forms, sueli as Colvillei and the 

 other earlv-llowering varieties, which may be placed 

 five to a t" pot. Two parts of rich loam, with 

 one pait of decayed hot bed manure and a little 

 sand, will make a good compost for these. Recently 

 some of the later Gladioli have been successfully 

 forced, but they require careful attention, and are 

 ,-eareelv suitable for ordinary glass structures. The 

 Gladiolus is subject to fungoid diseases, but no 

 remedy lias yet been discovered. 



