
HUNTRESS 
plant one that looks suspicious, for most bulb dis- 
eases are highly contagious and may easily and 
quickly affect your ground and your entire stock. 
The supplier of your bulb stock should be one on 
which you can rely not only for honesty but also 
on his ability to know gladiolus dsieases. Always 
buy directly from a grower of unquestioned repu- 
tation for supplying healthy, vigorous, young dis- 
case-iree stock, 
Ground Preparation and Fertilization: If at all 
possible, plow your gladiolus bed in the fall. When 
soil is very poor, apply leaf mold, compost or ma- 
nure that is thoroughly aged. Raw manure or 
24 
chemical fertilizers rich in nitrogen are apt to cause 
scab and foster certain fungus diseases. Excess _ni- 
trate also makes a weak stem that lets the spikes 
crook. Consult your state agricultural college and 
county farm agent, if you have any doubts as to 
proper methods and materials to use. In the spring, 
work ground thoroughly, before planting. A roto- 
tiller type cultivator is ideal for this spring prepa- 
ration. Deep stirring of soil is essential for cut- 
flower production, eight inches is certainly a mini- 
mum depth to consider adequate. 
Planting Time and Depth of Plant: When glads 
are grown for bulbs, and bulblet production, shal- 
low planting is best, but for cut flower production, 
deep planting is necessary, or else spikes will loosen 
and fall when heavy rains or required water is 
necessary as the spikes are developing. For large 
bulbs plant 6 inches deep; for medium bulbs plant 
§ inches deep. Plant as soon as ground becomes 
warm. While bulbs may be planted very early, 
cold ground checks growth development, and blooms 
will actually be later than when planted later, when 
growing can start immediately. The way to produce 
early flowers is to select varieties that require less 
time to develop bloom. Many kinds require only 
65 to 75 days from planting, while mid-season vari- 
eties as Picardy under ideal conditions require 90 
to 95 days. As a general rule the early blooming 
varieties are not as good quality as the mid-season 
and late blooming sorts, but they are apt to bring 
higher prices as they come into themarket when lo- 
cal glads are scarce. By careful selection of varieties 
the cut flower season from a single planting may 
extend over a period of more than six weeks, while 
successive plantings can prolong the cutting season 
until frost, 
Size of Bulbs to Plant: We recommend that you 
buy only young bulbs of medium size, either size 3 
or size 4 — these cost less per bulb — and while it 
takes them a few days longer to bloom, they will 
make saleable spikes, and next year will be large 
bulbs that will bloom not only a few days earlier 
but will make spikes of exhibition quality. While 
many varieties such as Oregon Rose will make sale- 
able spikes from small bulbs, definitely these cannot 
compare with spikes grown from larger bulbs of 
the same varieties, and if you are to establish and 
maintain a reputation for quality bloom you should 
be careful that you do not offer spikes of less than 
good quality. 
Cultivation Care: Medium size bulbs planted for 
cutflowers are usually planted about 4 bulbs to the 
lineal foot, with row spacing depending upon the 
cultivation tool. Here at Gladland Acres we pre- 
fer a 24” spacing from center to center of row. Cul- 
tivation must be thorough and frequent. However, 
deep cultivation is neither necessary nor even de- 
sirable. Watering, if you live in an area of normal 
rainfall, should not be necessary until development 
of Sth leaf. The bud spike is then forming within 
the sheath and frequent and ample water is then 
esseential if you expect to produce spikes of normal 
and adequate height. Assuming soil is even reason- 
ably fertile, it has been our experience that ample 
water supply is all that is necessary to produce fine 
