Glad Tidings for Summer - Caring for Gladioli, the Joys of the Garden
Linda Ann Nickerson
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Gladioli are extremely simple to grow and utterly rewarding. You can plant several varieties of these deceptively easy and delightful flowers in the spring. By midsummer, you will have gorgeous cut flowers for your table. Everyone will think you have been to the farmer's market for these showy stems 
, instead of your own backyard!
Choose Your Colors.
Choose your colors from a huge variety: pink, red, yellow, white, purple, orange, peach, and more. Even bi-colored gladioli are available. Petals may be wavy, ruffled, or even lacy. Select the look you like the best!
Gladioli may grow from 2' to 4' high. (Read package labels carefully.)
Begin with at least a dozen or two corms (like bulbs). In a few years, you can expect to have a whole lot more!
Pick corms that are sturdy and at least 1" in diameter. Anything smaller will probably not bloom the first season.
Select a Sunny Site.
Pick a sunny spot in your garden, preferably protected from direct wind. Full sun is needed, if your gladioli are to produce sturdy stalks and vibrant colored flowers.
Gladioli do best in well-drained soil. Cultivate, or loosen, the soil to a depth of about one foot.
Sow Lovely Glads!
Plant the corms (bulbs) in the spring, sit back and wait, and prepare to be amazed. Lovely stalks of floral beauty will sprout up in midsummer.
Plant your gladioli in bunches of seven, for the most spectacular blooming display. With the pointed side up and the hairy (scarred) side down, set each corm into a hole that is roughly four times as the height of the corm (or approximately 10" to 12" deep). Space them 6" to 8" apart.
Arrange gladioli in rows for the simplest maintenance and organization. (Be sure to label colors and varieties for future reference!) They may be planted among other flowers (such as daylilies) or even in the vegetable garden.
Extend Your Display.
Beginning in early May and continuing through mid-June, you can stagger your plantings of the corms for prolonged blooming. Gladioli may produce blossoms from July until the first frost.
Plant a new set every two weeks!
Water Them Well.
Choose Your Colors.
Choose your colors from a huge variety: pink, red, yellow, white, purple, orange, peach, and more. Even bi-colored gladioli are available. Petals may be wavy, ruffled, or even lacy. Select the look you like the best!
Gladioli may grow from 2' to 4' high. (Read package labels carefully.)
Begin with at least a dozen or two corms (like bulbs). In a few years, you can expect to have a whole lot more!
Pick corms that are sturdy and at least 1" in diameter. Anything smaller will probably not bloom the first season.
Select a Sunny Site.
Pick a sunny spot in your garden, preferably protected from direct wind. Full sun is needed, if your gladioli are to produce sturdy stalks and vibrant colored flowers.
Gladioli do best in well-drained soil. Cultivate, or loosen, the soil to a depth of about one foot.
Sow Lovely Glads!
Plant the corms (bulbs) in the spring, sit back and wait, and prepare to be amazed. Lovely stalks of floral beauty will sprout up in midsummer.
Plant your gladioli in bunches of seven, for the most spectacular blooming display. With the pointed side up and the hairy (scarred) side down, set each corm into a hole that is roughly four times as the height of the corm (or approximately 10" to 12" deep). Space them 6" to 8" apart.
Arrange gladioli in rows for the simplest maintenance and organization. (Be sure to label colors and varieties for future reference!) They may be planted among other flowers (such as daylilies) or even in the vegetable garden.
Extend Your Display.
Beginning in early May and continuing through mid-June, you can stagger your plantings of the corms for prolonged blooming. Gladioli may produce blossoms from July until the first frost.
Plant a new set every two weeks!
Water Them Well.
- Planting and caring for gladioli
- Growing flowers for floral arranging