Lots of people are awed by the the delicate beauty of flowering vegetation, I being among them. A remarkable example of which is the gladiolus. Due to
Popularity, there has been an increase in the
Commercial growth of the plant in several countries including Netherlands and Israel. Gladiolus farms in the united States also ship their products to
Flower-growing enthusiasts around the globe.
The beauteous gladiolus family extends to more than 2,000 varieties, with every color,hue, and texture imaginable.
How has this seemingly endless variety of the same flower been developed by growers?
CREATING NEW VARIETIES.
Wielding an instrument likely a camel hair brush, the
grower transfers pollen from the male part of the flower called a stamen to the female part of
another flower called a stigma.
Pollen is usually placed on the lowest blooms
of the host plants. The flower is then tied shut to
keep natural pollinators, such as bees, or flies,from altering the results. To obtain a color or appearance one type of gladiolus is crossed with another
possessing the desired features.
This does not mean the resulting hybrid is a new kind of flower. The potential for such variety has been there all along, locked up in the gladiolus'
complex genetic code. Through selective
breeding, gladioli go from dazzling white to black-
red or dark purple to having blotches, spots,
frills and double florets or blooms. Some also posses
a slight fragrance.
DELICATE BEAUTY
There are many varieties of glad.
A delightful one is called pulchritude. As
it's petals extend, they reveal soft, ruffled lavender edges with darker lavender at their tips, the bottom petals also bear a delightful splash of dark rose
and purple.
Another variety, called orchid lace, appears so fragile it seems as though the
slightest touch would bruise it. Other varieties bear evocative names such as glittering star, dream's end,red alert, peerless and silver moon.
GROWING GLADIOLI
In addition to obtaining seeds from the flowers, gladiolus farmers harvest the corms, the bulblike bottom part of the flowers stem,
they also collect cormels, small secondary corms that grow on the main corms.
Cultivated gladioli have been developed mostly from African species. Thus, they have their roots in the tropics, so to speak, and are quite sensitive to climate. They may not survive the cold winters of some lands, but they do well during the warm summer months.
In colder climates the corms should be dug up at the end of the growing season and carefully cleaned.
A new corm will have formed, and removing the old, dead corm at the very bottom of the stem will make it easier for the new corm to put down roots. In addition, the pea-sized cormels that lie clustered on each corm must be removed. During cold weather both cormels and corms should be kept in a dry, cool place with temperatures above freezing.
In temperate climates, planting can begin in the early spring. Planting time is not so critical in warmer climates. Ideally, the cormels and corms should be planted in moist, slightly acidic soil. They should be located where they will get bright sunlight, as gladioli do not do well in shade.
Cormels may be sprinkled into a three-inch-deep [8 cm] furrow and then covered with earth. Corms, on the other hand, should be planted at a depth of five inches [13 cm]. To prevent overcrowding in a home garden, medium-sized corms should be planted about three inches apart and larger corms four to five inches apart. If you clean and plant your gladiolus corms carefully, after a few months, you should be rewarded with an indescribable display—the rich, fragile beauty of the gladiolus.