Gladioli require special care in the garden - cleaning and storing the bulbs after flowering is a must. If you leave them in the ground for the winter, then there is a high probability that at low temperatures they will freeze or be eaten by rodents.
Please put your likes and subscribe to the channel "About Fasenda". This will allow us to publish more interesting garden articles.
When to dig up bulbs and how to do it right
In each region, the time for digging up gladioli bulbs differs depending on climatic conditions. It is recommended to do this after the leaves on the plants begin to turn yellow and wither. First of all, early varieties and those bulbs that have grown from large planting material with dark flowers are extracted from the ground. Plants grown from "babies" are dug up last, because they were planted for the first time, they did not bloom and they need more time to fully ripen.
It is important to carry out the procedure on a sunny day. If the weather is bad, there are prolonged rains, and the time is running out, then the bulbs are removed from the garden, be sure to rinse with water from the remnants of the earth and dry well.
Before digging, the stems must be cut with a sharp garden tool, leaving small shoots up to 5 cm long. In order not to damage the tubers, the shovel should be held strictly vertically and stuck deeply, at least 20 cm away from the stem. If the soil is not very loose, you can try using a pitchfork. If the lateral part of the tuber is accidentally cut off during digging, but the central process is not disturbed, then the cut off place is processed with brilliant green. The damaged copies will need to be stored separately from the rest.
The husks are not removed from the bulbs so as not to damage the planting material, only the roots are cut off. If the old bottom cannot be removed immediately, then after final drying it will be easy to do. Found sick specimens are removed from the site and destroyed by burning to prevent the spread of the disease.
For disinfection after removing the remnants of the earth, the bulbs are placed for half an hour in liquid Fitosporin, a 3% solution of potassium permanganate or a soda-salt composition (for 10 liters of water 1 tbsp. l. salt and 5 tbsp. l. baking soda).
Preparation and storage of bulbs
After digging and washing, all planting material is placed in 1 row on a flat surface and dried in the open air for 3 days. In rainy weather, arrange for a dry area indoors. The tubers are periodically turned over to avoid the rotting process.
After 3 days, the tubers are placed in prepared cardboard or plywood boxes with holes for air circulation. They are neatly laid in 1 row with the bottom down. The boxes are placed in a heated room so that the air temperature is not lower than + 18˚С.
After 3 weeks, the corms are sorted and cleaned of dry scales. Babies can be placed in paper bags or wrapped in cloth and stored in the refrigerator compartment in the vegetable compartment.
Within 2 months after digging, the tubers are dormant and will not germinate. But in the future, high ambient temperature and humidity can lead to germination of the root system. To prevent this from happening, the boxes should be moved to a basement or cellar where there is good ventilation. If there are few copies, then they can be left in the refrigerator until spring, after wrapping them in newspaper.
If in the spring you find that the tubers are slightly shriveled and shriveled, then this is normal. Immediately before planting, they will need to be wrapped in a damp cloth, and in a day they will return to their original shape.
Gladioli are well preserved in a paraffin "wrapper". Wax or paraffin is melted in a container in a water bath. Each onion is first dipped in hot paraffin solution and then in cold water. With this wrapping, the bulbs can be left without any problems even at home, they do not lose moisture and are protected from infection.
Only well-dried gladiolus bulbs before storage will last until next season. If the conditions of drying and storage have been violated, then brown spots appear on the tubers, they become soft, moldy and rot.
Original articleand many other materials, you can find on ourwebsite.
Please put your likes and subscribe to the channel "About Fasenda". This will allow us to publish more interesting garden articles.
Read more:10 garden tricks for advanced summer residents