Photo by L.A. Jackson
April into June is a good stretch of time to try your hand at growing gladioli to doll up the summer flower garden. Planted gladiolus corms (often incorrectly called “bulbs” by gardeners) mature in about 60 to 90 days, so it won’t take long to see beautiful bloom towers from these warm-weather pretties.
Before planting any glads, first find an area that is in full sunlight, drains well and is somewhat acidic. Then, build up the planting site with plenty of compost or commercial soil conditioner. Mixing in a time-release “bulb boost” type of fertilizer will also add extra zip to the future flower show.
Plant the bottoms of the bulbs—er, corms—4 to 6 inches deep and about 6 inches apart. Moisture is important for maturing plants. They should receive about an inch of water a week. So, if the rains don’t come, keep the garden hose handy. Mulching will help conserve moisture as well as discourage nutrient-robbing weeds.
Some gladiolus selections reach 4 to 5 feet tall, which can lead to a problem in that they get, well, tall, and they easily fall over in windy or rainy conditions. To help stop the flop, suspend a piece of common chicken wire horizontally on stakes 18 inches above the glad bed. Then, the plants will grow up and through the holes for support.
Don’t like the idea of crusty chicken wire befouling the pleasant visual appeal of your flower bed? Go with easily found dwarf gladiolus cultivars that have a lesser flop factor because they only reach 24 to 36 inches tall.
Concerned about Bambi romping through your glad bed? No worries, these summer showoffs are deer-resistant.
Gladioli are not one-shot beauties. With minimal care, they will usually come back year after year. I use the adverb “usually” as a qualifier dependent on the weather. During typical South Carolina winters, glads can survive the colder months.
I have gladioli parked in my USDA Zone 7b garden that have made fairly reliable springtime returns for years. The only cold-weather precaution I have taken is to cover their raised bed in autumn with a 3-inch layer of fallen leaves. I don’t cut up the leaves but rather apply them whole. This helps insulate the ground, of course, but it also deflects heavy winter rains, which could turn my glad bed into a cold, soggy mess that encourages corm rot.
April in the Garden
• If your green thumb is itching to get the summer veggie patch growing, give it a good scratch by planting such edible delectables as field peas, tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, peppers, watermelons and snap beans this month. And no, I didn’t forget eggplant and okra—wait until at least the beginning of May to plant these heat-lovers.
• Ugly fences, lonely gazebos and bare decks can quickly get into the swing of a new growing season if they are dolled up with such fast-growing vines as purple hyacinth bean, ornamental sweet potato vine, scarlet runner bean, cypress vine, morning glory, black-eyed Susan vine or moonvine.
Tip of the month
Hellebore blooms that have graced the winter garden are now beginning to set seeds. If you want this transition to result in more eye-catching hellebores, simply let the seeds drop from their dry, brown pods to the ground or spread them about yourself, and then cover with a thin layer of compost or quality commercial garden soil. Don’t let freshly seeded areas dry out over the summer. It can take up to three years for new plants to flower, and although they might not be exact copies of the parent plant, I’m sure you will still find them to be pretty.
L.A. Jackson is the former editor of Carolina Gardener magazine. Contact him at lajackson1@gmail.com.