an 
— 
year, off the new bulb. It is best to burn this discarded material as well as the 
tops, as they are the sources of thrips and other infestations if left on the ground. 
As soon as the bulbs are cleaned they are ready for winter storage. Be sure to dust 
these bulbs with 5% DDT dusting powder. 
Care of Bulbs 
Every year, if you own or purchase bulbs in the fall, be sure they are well 
dried or cured and dusted with 5% DDT dust before putting them in your storage. 
Purchased bulbs should be opened on receiving and inspected, as they may mold if 
left tightly wrapped for any length of time. Bulbs in storage should be kept at 
approximately 40 degrees F. in open trays or containers with the bulbs piled not 
more than 3 or 4 inches deep. Be careful of your bulbs as they are very tender. 
Look at your bulbs often and shift them about in the trays or containers periodically 
until planting time in the spring of the year. 
Care of Blooms 
As cut flowers, gladiolus are supreme. Cut them when one or two florets are 
open; use a sharp knife, slipping the blade down the sides of the stem to loosen 
the foliage if long stems are desired; then a turn of the wrist and a little pressure 
will sever the stem and leave the leaves with the bulb, which is so necessary to pro- 
duce a large, healthy bulb for the next yeaer. At least five leaves must remain on 
the bulb to insure its continued growth. As soon as possible after the flowers are 
cut, place them in a deep container of cold water. Each day change the water, cut 
about one inch off the stem and remove any wilted florets. Treated this way, glad- 
iolus will be attractive for ten days to two weeks. 
COLOR AND SIZE CLASSIFICATION 
By using classification numbers we can convey, in the space of a single line 
nearly all of the information usually presented in several lines of a catalog. 
For example: “WHITE GOLD” (506), the first figure “5” shows it is in the 
Giant class with florets larger than 5% inches across; the second figures, “06”, show 
it to be a cream and our four word description, “Large early creamy white,” conveys 
the rest of the picture, as actually the florets often measure 7% inches, hence the 
Large is a distinctive feature of this most outstanding variety. 
SIZES 
Miniature Class 100—Florets under 2% inches 
Small i 200—2% inches thru 3% inches 
Medium ” ~_ 300—Above 3% inches 
Large a 400—4% thru 5% inches 
Giant ” 500—514 inches and larger 
COLOR CLASSES 
Class Class Class 
00 White 30 Salmon, light 60 Rose, light 
06 Cream 32 Salmon, deep 62 Rose, deep 
10 Yellow, light 36 Scarlet 66 Lavender 
12 Yellow, deep 40 Pink, light 70 Purple 
16 Buff 42 Pink, deep 76 Violet, light 
20 Orange, light 50 Red, light 78 Violet, deep 
22 Orange, deep 52 Red, deep 80 Smoky shades 
24 Red-orange 54 Red, Black 90 Any other color 
NOTE: Ending odd numbers always denote conspicuous deeper markings in 
addition to normal color shade. Even numbered varieties may have such markings, 
especially in the deeper color tones, but for the most part are solid colors. 
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