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Twisted Gladiolis
Terry Day
Posts: 15
Can somebody advise me where I am going wrong with Gladiolis. For the past three years I have bought and planted gladioli corms. Placing them in a hole lined underneath with grit as I have clay type soil from about a spade depth down. When the Gladiolis break surface and grow there are not as many show as were sown but the ones that do grow and flower are not upright but the stems are curved and twisted and the head of the flowers are very poor and seem to fail as soon as they have opened. I am buying fifty this year from a very good nursery T&M and would like to be able to have confidence that they will do better than in the past. When I have dug the failed ones out they seem as if they have rotted due to damp? Please advise
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Hi Terry
Can you tell us more about the site where you're growing them please - aspect, soil type etc?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I have tried two areas of my garden. One in a east facing border where the soil was heavy clay and has been broken up by double digging two years ago and six bags of Horse Manure added. It is now workable and all other plants Hostas, Dahlias and Fushias thrive but I have noticed the same deformed stems on a few Delphiniums that I have grown there. The second place I tried was in a raised bed at the side of the greenhouse and faces into the sun for most of the day to early evening. This is mainly bags of bought compost mixed with soil. Again clay deeper down at around a foot or so deep. This area only produced two Gladioli flowers of of ten sown.
It does sound like a drainage issue, how deep was the layer of grit under the corms?
I have heard putting sharp sand above the corm as well can help.
Does water puddle on the surface of the soil?
I'm wondering if you've inadvertently used contaminated manure https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=477
I know it affects delphiniums badly - I don't know whether it affects gladioli.
Does anyone else know?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I'm with dove, it sounds like the manure was contaminated with a weedkiller used on hay fields. If you can get home made compost, or even a sack or two of composted fine bark oreven peat, that should help your soil. The rotting off is usually due to bad drainage.
I thank you for your comments. There was five bags of well rotted farmyard manure put into that area of the garden two years ago. Left on top to be drawn in with weather worms etc.I have had better sucess starting the new delphiniums in pots until good size. Could I do this with Gladioli Corms?
If we're right about the contamination Terry, it may be some consolation to know that according to what I've read the contaminant will break down and become harmless over time.
Info here - the FAQs at the bottom are particularly interesting
https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=477
I've never grown gladioli in pots so afraid I can't help you with that one.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Flowerlover3 I only dropped a handfull of grit in each hole and then backfilled with soil after the corm was in. There is no lying water on the garden it seems to have good drainage overall since the addition of the Manure being double dug and very easy to work with the spade now. Most of my planting for bedding plants etc is done with a hand trowell which is something that was not possible before.
Like you I have heavy clay. I have great success with the cheapest gladioli corms from Lidl. I plant in 2 litre pots of ordinary multi purpose (or home-made if I have it) and tuck them away in a sheltered spot, or cold greenhouse, until they are well grown then plant them where they are needed - still in the pot. A little comfrey fertiliser if they look as though they need a bit of a boost - an excellent results. Easy to lift and store afterwards (if I get round to it).
Thank you for the advice I'll give that a go. Nothing to lose. That is how I do my Dahlias under the greenhouse bench and then plant them into their selected area when they have broken the surface.