The content of the articlecultivation of gladioli - video
This delicate and elegant flower is the decoration of any garden and is not at all as capricious as it seems. Even living in Siberia, you can successfully grow gladioli, observing the rules of planting and care.
Gladiolus in brief
Gladiolus( swordsman) is a perennial plant belonging to the iris family. The highest specimens reach one and a half meters in height. A wide variety of varieties covers almost the whole range of colors - from snow-white to almost black, including greenish shades. It grows well and blooms in sunny areas. The plant reproduces with corms. The annual onion planted in the spring is completely exhausted and dies out of the season. Up to three replacement bulbs with small children form on this place.
For the cultivation of gladioli in Siberia, varieties with an early or medium flowering period are suitable for the bulbs to mature.
Site selection and soil preparation for gladioli
The best on the site will be a sunny place on the south side, protected from cold winds and without stagnation of groundwater. A good protection against the wind can serve as a fence, a wall of a house or a trellis with climbing plants. These flowers do not tolerate swampy lowlands. If the plot is low, under the gladioli you need to make a high bed with drainage. Spring preparation of gladioli for planting in Siberia begins in the fall. The selected area is dug up, freeing from weeds, and fertilizers are added:
- phosphorous, potash,
- ash,
- rotted manure or compost.
Sand should be added to heavy clay soils.
All fertilizers are applied deeply, since the root system of gladioli forms two tiers and goes to a depth of 30-40 cm.
Spring preparation of corms and germination
The dates of planting gladioli in Siberia can shift depending on your region and area. Need to focus on the temperature of the soil. By the time of planting, it should dry out and warm up to 10-15 degrees. This usually happens in the first half of May.
A month before the expected planting time of the bulb should be prepared:
- remove from storage and clean from dry shells;
- carefully inspect and reject dry and sick;
- to process the bulbs with potassium permanganate and any antifungal drug - “Maxim”, “Fundazol”;
- for earlier flowering, you can soak the bulbs in growth stimulants - "Epin", "Energen".
When the gladiolus bulbs are decontaminated, they can begin to germinate. In the conditions of Siberia, this procedure will help to achieve earlier flowering and successful maturation of planting material. For germination suitable warm bright room with moderate humidity. Tubers laid ground down in one layer. For 10-15 days they should appear escape.
If no sprouts appear in 2 weeks, planting material is not suitable for planting.
How to grow gladiolus seedlings
If the variety does not differ in the early periods of flowering, the flower can be grown by seedling. In the conditions of Siberia, gladioli for sprouting on seedlings should be taken out at the end of winter, at a time when sowing of peppers and eggplants usually begins. After preparation, the tubers are planted in boxes with fertile soil to a depth of 1-1.5 cm. The earth is kept moderately moist. Boxes put in a warm lighted place. At the time of planting in the soil the seedlings should have a developed root system and several leaves.
Planting of gladioli in the ground
Spring planting of gladioli in the open ground in Siberia coincides with the time when the soil warms up to 8-10 degrees and there is no likelihood of night frost.
Replacing bulbs and children, dug in the fall, are suitable for planting. You can plant gladioli in the furrows or nesting method in flowerbeds. The bulbs are placed on a handful of dry sand, to a depth of 5-8 cm, the distance between them in the row should be 10-15 cm, and between the rows - 25-30.Children are planted to a depth of 3-4 cm, making intervals of 2-3 cm. They are pre-soaked for 24 hours in warm water. After landing, the wells are watered with warm water.
Peduncles in children should be cut off to get a large commodity bulb in the fall.
Gladiolus care
Proper planting and proper care for gladiolus will ensure strong growth and abundant blooms, even in the harsh Siberian conditions.
Before the emergence of the shoots, the tubers should be watered very moderately and carefully so that the earth does not become compacted. After the first sprouts appear, watering is increased. Watering is better not under the root, but in the grooves nearby. The soil under the flowers is regularly loosened, in order to get air to the roots, and weeds are removed. After the appearance of peduncles, tall varieties are necessarily tied to pegs.
Protection against pests and diseases
Gladiolus are susceptible to fungal diseases and trips. The correct preparation of planting material, competent care and timely spraying of plants reduces the likelihood of fungal diseases. Sick specimens should be removed from the garden along with a clod of earth; this place should be shed with any fungicide, then spray the remaining healthy bushes with it.
From thrips help treatment with drugs such as "Decis", "Iskra", "Aktellik", "Fufanon."
Disease prevention consists of moderate watering, non-polluted planting and weed removal.
Collection and storage of planting material
Gather bulbs and children for storage in the fall, before the onset of frost. It is believed that they fully matured 35 days after flowering. Plants gently dig a shovel or pitchfork, trying not to hurt. After digging, shake the ground and trim the stem. After that, the tubers are laid out to dry.
In the apartment they can be stored in the refrigerator, wrapped in several layers of newspapers and a plastic bag. In the package you need to make holes for ventilation. Also planting material can be stored in a dry and clean cellar.
Thus, following these simple rules of planting and care, even in Siberia, gladioli can be grown. A few early varieties with different periods of flowering will delight a skilled gardener almost all summer.
