Read Ebook: The Gladiolus: A Practical Treatise on the Culture of the Gladiolus by Crawford Matthew

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it is a flower for all people and all places. It is suitable for the home, and from midsummer until November is a constant dependence. For stores and offices its bright and lasting bloom makes it very desirable. It is in great demand for ornamenting churches, halls, schoolrooms, and, in fact, all places where people come together for almost any purpose. It is popular for weddings, and great quantities are often used on such occasions, a single order sometimes calling for thousands of spikes. Last of all, it is seen in the house of mourning, and at the graves of the dead, where its sweet cheerfulness seems to speak a message of comfort to the living.

Habits of Growth.

The gladiolus is a bulbous plant that grows only in the warm season of the year. It may be grown from bulbs, bulblets, or seeds. Amateurs have to do mainly with bulbs, as their chief object is to produce flowers. The bulb contains the food for the nourishment of the young plant until it has leaves, when it commences to form a new bulb close above the old one, which latter gradually shrivels and dies, its work being done. Meanwhile, the young plant, having roots and leaves of its own, continues to grow and build up the new bulb.

When far enough advanced, the flower spike starts up through the middle of the foliage and makes its appearance above the upper leaf. From the time the spike comes in sight, the plant seems to devote the most of its energy to developing the flowers, and the seed which follows. When the latter is allowed to ripen, the bulb is smaller than it otherwise would have been, and not only this, it is vertically thin, having been partially starved by the diverting of the nourishment to ripen the seed. On the other hand, if the spike is removed when the first flower opens, the bulb will grow larger and thicker. Other things being equal, a bulb is valuable according to its vertical diameter. The most perfect ones are obtained by planting small ones, just below the blooming size. Not being able to send up flower spikes, their vitality goes to the production of new bulbs, and these are conical, or nearly round, which is the ideal shape. Many florists insist upon this form when buying bulbs for forcing. They are known to the trade as virgin bulbs. As to the breadth of bulbs, the broader the better, other points being the same. One that is conical in shape, and three-fourths of an inch in horizontal diameter, will probably produce as fine a spike of flowers as is possible to the variety, but it will yield only one, while bulbs of larger size may send up from two to six.

Bulblets are produced during the summer, on underground stems that come out from the base of the new bulbs. Each bulblet is enclosed in a hard shell, which is generally brown in color, though sometimes gray, slate, or black, and very rarely white.

Just here I will speak of the difference between bulblets and small bulbs, for there are some confused ideas abroad on this subject. Bulblets grow from the bottoms of bulbs, are usually attached by stems, and have hard shells. Bulbs grow from other bulbs, from bulblets, or from seeds, and have soft shells. They may be very tiny, no larger than apple seeds, but still they are bulbs.

Varieties differ widely in their ability to produce bulblets. The May and Augusta are exceedingly prolific, while the Shakespeare is just the opposite. A bulb too small to bloom will yield many times more bulblets than a large one of the same variety. Sometimes as many as two hundred bulblets have been found on a single bulb.

Corm and cormel are the correct botanical terms respectively for solid bulbs, like those of the gladiolus, and the small underground increase, but these names are rarely used in commercial horticulture.

Soils and Preparation.

The gladiolus will grow on almost any soil, and do well with only a moderate chance. While it has its preferences, it readily adapts itself to circumstances, and makes the most of what it finds. Whether sand, clay, gravel, muck or loam, it will get a living out of them, though gravel is perhaps least desirable. The gladiolus withstands drouth very well, but likes plenty of moisture much better, and low land well drained is excellent for it. It ought not to be under water. Good farm land, suitable for corn or potatoes, answers its purpose very well, and it flourishes on green sward properly plowed and harrowed. The richest place in the garden suits it admirably, and it shows its appreciation of special favors by ready response in growth and bloom.

The ground should be plowed or spaded to a good depth, about the same as for potatoes, and harrowed or raked until it is thoroughly pulverized, not only on the surface, but down deep.

Fertilizers.

Any crop can be well fed with good stable manure properly applied, but this is sometimes out of reach. In such cases we must either resort to commercial fertilizers or depend upon the plant food in the soil, which is seldom sufficient for any crop, especially one whose yield of profit may be greatly increased or diminished by the giving or withholding of nourishment. The gardener cannot afford to take any risks along this line. His crops are too valuable. The safe course is for him to assume that the land is poor to consider the ground as simply a place of anchorage for the roots of plants, and a reservoir for plant food to be supplied; and then, to furnish the amount needed to produce the crop. Fortunately, most soils do, as a matter of fact, contain a fair supply of fertility, but very rarely as much as a crop can appropriate, and it is best to be on the safe side. The gladiolus is a sturdy grower, able to assimilate a generous supply of nutriment, and should be properly fed.

In regard to the use of stable manure as a fertilizer for this crop, almost any amount of it may be put on in the fall before planting, to be leached and subdued by the changes of winter, but it is hardly safe to spread it on the ground in the spring and plow it under, lest it come in contact with the bulbs and cause the growing crop to be scabby and unsalable. I have used for many years, and with most satisfactory results, a good potato phosphate. Any complete commercial fertilizer will answer the purpose. I once tried a ton of Peruvian guano, as an experiment, but it did no better than the potato phosphate, which costs less.

Commercial fertilizer may be applied in various ways,--before planting or after, or in the furrows. From five hundred to one thousand pounds per acre, or even more, may be used, according to the previous condition of the land and the results desired. When used before planting, it is put on with a grain drill, or, if the area is small, is raked in by hand. It may be applied in the furrow in two ways--first, strew it along in the bottom and mix it with the soil by dragging a chain or a hoe over it, or by using the cultivator that made the drill. Then plant the bulbs, and cover properly. Second, after the drill is made and the bulbs are dropped, cover them with a little earth, say half the depth of the furrow, then put in the fertilizer by hand, and finish covering. This places it where the first good rain will wash its richness down to the roots. When applied after planting, it may be scattered by hand along the rows or over the bed. This plan produces good results, even on poor land, and the same may be said of the others.

Time to Plant.

Large blooming bulbs may be planted in April or May, or they may be held until June, or even July, if they can be kept from growing too much in storage. It is their natural instinct to send out roots and shoots in the spring, and when they do they should be planted soon. When one has a considerable quantity of flowering bulbs, it is easy to secure a long succession of bloom by planting at several different times. Good sized bulbs will bloom in about ninety days after planting. Smaller ones require a longer time. If all the blooming sizes of the same variety are planted at the same time, they will bloom in regular succession, the largest first and the smallest last. Small bulbs,--too small to bloom,--bulblets, and seed, should be planted early in order to have plenty of time to make their growth. About the first of April is a suitable time in the latitude of Northern Ohio. In a mild climate the bulbs may be left in the ground all winter, and the same might be done in the north if they could be covered securely enough to keep out the frost.

Planting.

After the land has been well prepared, furrows are made three feet apart and about six inches deep, for large bulbs. The furrowing is done with the Planet Jr. cultivator, arranged with a large tooth behind, and two or four smaller ones in front, turned edgewise. They steady the cultivator and contribute towards the fining of the soil. Next, the bulbs are placed in the furrows, as far apart as their own diameter; that is, two-inch bulbs should be two inches apart, one-inch bulbs one inch, and so on down through all the blooming sizes. When bulbs are an inch or more in diameter, they are generally placed right side up, though this is not essential. However, when scattered along the furrow they can be put in position very quickly.

When bulbs are planted in a small way, it is not customary to place them in rows. A better plan is to scatter them over the ground about as far apart as they are wanted, say six or eight inches each way, and put them in one at a time with a trowel or dibble, five or six inches below the surface. They are planted at this depth, in both garden and field, to prevent their blowing over when in bloom. Those that are from one-half to three-fourths of an inch in diameter should be covered with about four inches of soil.

For planting small stock, less than half an inch in diameter, the ground should be prepared as previously directed. The rows should be three feet apart if the cultivating is to be done with a horse; if by hand, eighteen inches. The furrows should be straight, and three inches in depth. The grower can now choose one of two methods of planting. He can sow the bulbs in the furrows, about twelve to the foot, or drop them in hills, four to six in a place, every twelve inches. In either case they can be covered with a cultivator, as before described, ridged up, and harrowed or raked afterwards, thus saving the first and most expensive weeding. When the bulbs have started sufficiently to make the rows visible, the cultivator can be used, and from that time forward the most of the work can be done with a horse, turning a little earth up to the rows each time.

The hill method of planting takes more ground, but it has two distinct advantages over the drill method. First, the hoe can be used in the row between the hills, thus lightening the labor and expense of weeding; and, second, in taking up the bulbs in the fall, each hill can be lifted out with a fork, and every bulblet saved. In growing stock that is especially valuable this is of great account.

Very few bulbs less than one-half inch in diameter will bloom, so all they need is a chance to grow,--a loose surface, freedom from weeds, and sufficient plant food, with moisture enough to make it available. Bulbs thus produced will be of the most desirable shape, round or conical. If, however, any considerable number come into bloom, the spikes should be cut off as soon as they get above the foliage. This prevents the plants from exhausting themselves by producing flowers and seed. Other things being equal, bulbs from which the spikes are removed as early as possible will be about twice as heavy as those that produce seed unchecked.

The planting and management of bulblets will be considered in another chapter.

Cultivation.

The gladiolus needs the same stirring of the soil that is given to other crops. The reason why the soil must be stirred is a question upon which there are various opinions. Some hold that it is to kill the weeds; some to conserve moisture; others, to let the air to the roots; and, still others, to render the plant food in the ground available. Probably all are right, and the summing up seems to be, "to make the crop grow," so the safe way is to stir often. This cannot be overdone. A crop may be cultivated every day if desired, provided that good judgment is exercised as to the condition of the soil. It should not be stirred when too wet. The gladiolus has not a very long season for growth, and if best results are to be obtained it must be kept growing continuously. The next best thing to frequent stirring of the surface is a mulch to keep it loose and moist, but this is not as good.

Support.

The critical period in the life of the gladiolus is the blooming season, and some support at that time is almost indispensable. It grows so tall and offers so much resistance to the wind that the stalk is liable to be strained or broken, to the detriment of the bulb, and every effort should be made to keep it upright and prevent its being injured, even a little. When we consider that each leaf is connected with the bulb, and is doing its part towards bringing it to maturity, we readily perceive that whatever hurts the foliage also hurts the bulb, and realize the importance of preventing, as far as possible, any weakening of the connection between the two.

Deep planting is the first safeguard, and this is rendered still more effectual by ridging up the rows. Cutting the spikes as soon as the first flowers open is a great advantage, lessening the weight of the tops and diminishing its resistance to the wind, besides relieving the plant of the burden of nourishing the blooms. If the flowers are not wanted, the spikes can be cut as soon as they are high enough to escape the foliage, and this is still better. When the gladiolus is grown as a field crop, there are so many tops together that they support each other to some extent. When grown in small areas, it is a good plan to stretch wires along the rows about a foot from the ground, and tie the stalks to them. When the plants are scattered irregularly over the bed, they may be supported by tying each one to a short, inconspicuous stake sharpened and driven into the ground so that the top is fifteen to eighteen inches high. The same stakes may be used year after year, and it improves the appearance of the bed to have them painted green.

Digging and Curing.

When one has many bulbs to take up it is best to commence early, about the last of August or the first of September. This gives a long season for drying, which is quite necessary, as it is difficult to cure a great many in a short time, especially in unfavorable weather.

The smallest stock should be taken up first, for several reasons: First, the small bulbs grown from seed or from bulblets do not all ripen at the same time, and if digging is deferred until after some of them have matured, these drop from their stems in handling, and keep one picking them up, which is a great hindrance. If taken up in time, they can be pulled off from the green stalks in handfuls. Second, when the little bulbs mature they change color from white to brown, and if any drop it is not so easy to find them in the brown soil. They may be taken up when no larger than apple seeds, cured, and kept till spring with perfect success. Third, the small bulbs are easily dried and, if taken up early, they may be cured and packed away for the winter, entirely out of the way of the larger stock. It is quite an advantage to have part of the stock disposed of early. Fourth, it is slow, puttering work to take up small bulbs running from one hundred to three hundred to the foot of row, and it should be done before cold weather. My rule is to take up seedlings first, then the stock grown from the bulblets, then the next size larger, and so on, leaving the largest to the last. This stock is heavy, and men can keep warm handling it, even in quite cool weather, such as we are likely to have late in the season.

For convenience in taking up small stock, we use a low seat made like a small sled with wide runners which do not sink into the ground. A burlap sack is folded several thicknesses and tacked on the top for a cushion. This seat, a spading fork, a garden trowel, and a half-bushel basket lined with cloth to keep the bulblets from passing through, are the appliances needed for the work. The row is first loosened, or slightly pried up with the fork. Then the man occupying the seat, with the row in front of him, thrusts his trowel under a few inches of it, and with the other hand grasps the tops and lifts the bunch up, giving it a slight shake. He then holds it over the basket, and pulls the bulbs off from the tops, dropping them into the basket. When it is nearly filled, the contents are sifted through a number five sieve , which allows the earth to pass out. A second sifting through a number three sieve separates the bulblets from the bulbs. The latter are then spread out an inch or two deep in crates, and dried in the shade, after which the depth may be doubled for storage until cleaning time. The bulblets are poured into a box or barrel.

In digging larger bulbs, they are simply loosened up with the fork, lifted out by the tops, which are clipped off close to the bulbs, and are dropped into a coarse sieve, number two, placed over a bushel basket. Through this the earth and most of the bulblets are sifted into the basket. The bulbs are then spread in shallow crates to dry. The crates should be placed where the ventilation is good, and no rain can reach them. The bulblets are separated from the earth with a fine sieve, and put into a box or barrel.

It is advisable to dry bulbs of all sizes as soon as practical after digging. They look much brighter and more attractive when thus treated than when left lying in contact with the damp soil, for a considerable time, as this gives them a dull, discolored appearance. If grown for market, those that shine like satin are much more salable, and even for planting it is much more pleasing to have them bright than tarnished. Sometimes, when short of crates, or in a great hurry, we have piled up small bulbs with their accompanying soil in the field and left them to be cared for at a more convenient time. They kept all right and could have been kept until spring with sufficient covering, but they lost their luster and became dingy and unattractive.

Bulblets should not be dried. The reason for this will be given elsewhere.

Cleaning and Grading.

When bulbs are taken up, it is necessary that they should be dried to some extent before the work of cleaning begins,--the large ones partially at least, and the small ones wholly, for reasons which will be explained hereafter.

When large bulbs are dug, the old ones that were planted adhere so firmly that a good deal of force is required to separate them. For this reason it is not economy to clean them at once, so we store them in shallow crates, to the depth of two or three inches, and let them dry. They can then be filled in to the tops of the crates, which are four inches deep, and left until a convenient time for cleaning.

In two weeks after they are taken up, the older bulbs can be removed with a slight effort, but we reserve this work for stormy days. This is the way it is done: A number two sieve is placed upon a tight bushel basket, and filled with the bulbs to be cleaned. The old bulbs are taken off by hand and cast aside, carrying the roots with them, and the bulblets that still remain fall through the sieve into the basket below. The cleaned bulbs are dropped into another basket and then stored in crates to await the time for grading. The bulblets are put away in a cool, damp place. Bulbs three-fourths of an inch or more in diameter are cleaned one at a time, as described, but smaller ones are treated differently. There is much waste matter connected with them, roots, bits of tops, and soil, and the work of cleaning them is done out of doors on windy days in order that the trash and dust may be blown away. This explains why small stock should be thoroughly dried before it is cleaned. The bulbs are placed on a table or platform where the wind can have free play, and pulled and twisted by handfuls, until the most of them are separated from the rubbish. Those that still remain are picked out, and the trash is pushed off from the table. The bulbs are then put into a fine sieve and the remaining dust is sifted out. This process usually brings to light the last remnants of dry roots, leaves, and husks, and these are disposed of by pouring the bulbs from one bushel basket to another in the wind. At one time I had this finishing work done on more than half a million small bulbs with an old-fashioned fanning mill, and it was done to perfection.

Grading.

After the bulbs are cured and cleaned, the next step is grading, or separating them into classes according to size. This is absolutely necessary if the bulbs are to be sold, and almost as much so if they are to be planted. As to the sizes of the different grades, every grower seems to be a law unto himself. An effort has been made by the Society of American Florists to establish a uniform standard of division, and this will doubtless be accomplished in time. At present the most common arrangement of numbers and sizes seems to be about as follows:

First size 1-1/2 inches in diameter and up.

Second size 1-1/2 inches in diameter.

Third size 3/4-1 inch in diameter.

Fourth size 1/2-3/4 inch in diameter.

Fifth size all below 1/2 inch.

Numbers one, two, and three are considered regular blooming sizes, and are bought and sold by seedsmen. Number four bulbs will nearly all bloom, but they are seldom offered for sale, except to the trade. Number fives are not supposed to bloom at all, but a few of them will do so. There is a great difference in varieties in this respect, some blooming much smaller than others.

Bulbs may be approximately graded by screening them through sieves with meshes of proper sizes, from an inch and a half down to half an inch, and this is the most speedy way of doing the work. The necessary correcting can be done by hand when counting them out for sale or preparing them for planting.

Crates.

Some allusions to these have been made in the foregoing pages, and it may be well to preface the subject of keeping the bulbs over winter by describing the receptacles in which they are stored.

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