Approximately two or three months have passed since the gladiolus corms were stored for storage, so today is the time to see how they are stored, if there are any signs of disease or thrips damage. In addition, the period of natural dormancy ends in January, which means that corms can germinate if stored improperly.
Pathogenic fungi, thrips and other troubles
Bulb revision should be carried out several times during the winter.
Today you should carefully inspect the corms and if there is any doubt, remove the outer scales and inspect the corms.
Corms affected by fusarium, sclerotinia and botrytis can dry out, and this is easy to notice, as they become light, "empty".
Such corms (they are dry, shriveled, brown-black inside) must be urgently, immediately removed and, without any regret, thrown away. If burnt spots are visible on the scales, clean the corms from them.
If brown sunken spots - most likely from the defeat of bacteriosis - scab. Small spots can be cut out with a sharp knife, wiped with a solution of potassium permanganate and sprinkled with crushed charcoal (you can use an activated pharmaceutical charcoal tablet). Do not be discouraged, such corms in the spring can safely give normal sprouts. But an operation to cut out brown putrefactive spots caused by Fusarium or Botrytis will not help, since the hyphae of pathogenic fungi penetrate into the vessels of the plant and the infection will remain even if a rotten piece of corm is cut out.
Therefore, it is better, no matter how insulting, to immediately eliminate all corms affected by spots.
When corms are stored in warm conditions, thrips often begin to "work" - a small insect that safely falls under the scales of corms.
In storage, thrips begin to suck out the juices of corms, their surface becomes rough. With severe damage, the corms dry out. But they can be treated with insecticides. Naphthalene helps well, which can be poured into a bag with corms and tightly closed for up to one month. And then you can destroy the thrips and keep the corms until spring, and they can produce normally developed plants.
If the corms are stored, as they say, in bulk, that is, in several layers and it is damp in the store, then penicillary mold can develop: bluish sporulation can form on infected bulbs, a “nest” of affected ones forms near one corm. They should also be destroyed, the rest should be dried and storage conditions should be improved (reduce humidity and temperature).
In January, until the buds begin to awaken, heat treatment is carried out for children, tuber buds to destroy hyphae and spores of fungi and microbes. It has been established that when tubers are kept in water with a temperature of plus 53°C (for 30 minutes), the hyphae of pathogenic fungi die. Treatment with hot water at a temperature of plus 55 ° C leads to the almost complete destruction of Fusarium and Botrytis spores, however, this temperature is not always harmless to gladiolus sprouts.
Therefore, it is better to use water with a temperature of 53 ° C and process the tubers for 25-30 minutes. It is necessary to monitor the uniformity of the water temperature. After heat treatment, the tubers should be quickly cooled in running cold water and dried, then again placed in boxes or bags for storage until spring.
Gladiolus bulbs sprouted early, what to do?
Such a question can often be heard from "young" flower growers who are not yet fully familiar with the biology of this plant.
In fact, quite often already in March, at the beginning of April, quite long sprouts appear in corms stored at room conditions, although 1.5-2 months remain before they are planted in open ground. This happens due to a violation of storage conditions, namely due to an increase in humidity.
The dormant period of the gladiolus consists of a period of natural dormancy and a longer period of forced dormancy. During the period of natural dormancy, the corm cannot germinate, even if it falls into favorable conditions for this. But the time of natural dormancy is short and for different varieties it is 35-40 days. After that, the corm can germinate if there are suitable conditions for growth, namely enough heat and moisture.
With proper storage, when the temperature does not exceed 5-10 ° C, and the relative humidity of the air is 60-70%, the corms are in forced rest and do not germinate, since there are no conditions for growth. But when stored in unsuitable conditions for this, at high temperature and high humidity, growth processes begin, basically the sprout is greatly elongated, while the roots are not formed. This depletes the corm, when planted in the ground, it may not form inflorescences. What to do?
Some, seeing large sprouts, decide that such a corm should be planted in the ground as soon as possible, but with a lack of lighting and nutrition, the plants develop poorly and, as a rule, do not form flowers.
In order to detect trouble in time, it is necessary to regularly and quite often, especially closer to spring, view the stored corms. If the growth of sprouts is found, it is necessary to immediately decompose the corms in a dry, warm place and dry them for 3-5 days, and then place them in a place where the temperature is 2-7 ° C with low air humidity. 15-20 days before planting, namely from mid-April, the temperature in the storage is increased to 12-15°C, which contributes to the preparation of the corm for the formation of tubercles and germination.
Until spring, inspection of corms must be repeated two to three times. We repeat: all diseased corms must be removed immediately.
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What to do with gladiolus bulbs in March, if it's time to plant, sprouted, do not sprout? Consider all the options for preparing gladioli in early spring.
Gladiolus are dug out of the ground and sent for winter storage. Re-planting in spring is possible with well-preserved material, active bulbs that have not become obsolete, suitable weather conditions and prepared soil.
Gladiolus planted in spring after warming up the soil (from +10°C). The earth thawed and warmed up. The site is leveled, forming beds, mineral fertilizers are applied to the planting holes and rows of places are formed for planting the bulbs. Planting material of gladioli is taken out 15 days before boarding to inspect and prepare.
What to do with gladiolus bulbs in March:
- Remove the scales by cleaning the stored bulbs.
- Inspect and determine condition. In case of damage by Fusarium, rot, cut off or get rid of planting material.
- Treat with a weak fungicide solution if pruned, as well as to prevent diseases after planting.
Dense, uniform and healthy gladiolus bulbs visit the soil mixture, leaving a small part above the surface. An approximate recess for miniature bulbs up to 5-7 cm. Sprinkle ash mixed with sand on top (2 cm of embankment). Loosen and water the earth.
Planting scheme on the beds:
- 13 cm between landings.
- 10 cm between miniature varieties.
- Row width from 30 cm.
What to do if the bulbs woke up ahead of time?
If the gladiolus bulbs released sprouts ahead of time, then they should be immediately planted in the ground. Why did gladiolus sprouted earlier? Light, warmth and natural rhythms make the bulbs wake up. Usually sprouts appear 15-20 days before planting into the ground, but with high humidity they can grow faster.
How to prevent:
- Store in a dry place.
- Ventilate the room.
- Pack each bulb separately.
- Arrange in dry boxes.
- Store in a dark place.
- Do not store longer than 35-55 days (depending on variety).
Storage conditions: temperature from +5° С to +10° С, air humidity up to 60%, ventilated room without drafts, shady place.
Why is it so important: may not grow inflorescences if stored improperly or rot prematurely.
What to do : Spread out in a warm place to dry. Prepare for planting in a greenhouse or home pots. Air temperature + 10-12 ° C. Move to the ground after warming up the area.
What to do with gladiolus bulbs in March that do not germinate?
Bulbs that did not release sprouts ahead of time and visually healthy may don't germinate in the soil mixture. Why did this happen? Wrong planting site, unheated soil, poor storage - dead bulbs, few nutrients in the soil.
How to stimulate bulb growth:
- Plant in south-east, east-west orientation. Maintain distance in beds and between planting holes.
- Plant after the soil has warmed up in the area. Check weather forecasts for several weeks in advance to see if there will be frost.
- Plant in the same place as last year. Interleave to enter in 3-4 years. Reduces the risk of disease.
- Apply fertilizers per 1 m 2: 35 grams of superphosphate, 15 grams of potassium sulfate, 12 grams of ammonium nitrate.
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The thaw, which suddenly appeared in February, made many gardeners worry. Dahlia tubers and gladiolus bulbs, sensing spring, began to wake up ahead of time and sprout. How to return them to a state of rest, says agronomist Boris Alekseev.
GLADIOLUS
If they began to germinate in February-March, then they either belong to early-flowering hybrids, or were stored in too warm conditions. Ideally, gladioli are taken out of storage and peeled only on April 10-15. Then, being in the light and warm, late-flowering hybrids begin to wake up, and early-flowering ones find the presence of arrows up to 5 mm high, breaking through from the first days of April.
Decision. In the case when the sprouts broke through a month and a half ahead of time, one thing remains - to transfer the bulbs to a cooler place than where they have been lying until now, with an air temperature not higher than 3-4 degrees. For example, on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. If you see that the sprouts have stopped growing, then everything is fine. Bulbs can be left there until mid-April, in order to be planted in open ground in the first decade of May.
dahlias
How to deal with them depends on the size and general condition of the root tubers.
Big, healthy and juicy
They, unlike gladioli, in which it is by no means possible to check the sprouts that have broken through, have “seven lives”, that is, new ones grow in place of the broken ones.
Decision. Therefore, now it is better to remove the sprouts on large specimens so that they do not draw moisture from the root tubers, depleting and drying them. After that, it is necessary to create cooler storage conditions for dahlias until April, when it will be possible to begin their germination.
Small, weak and frail
Such root tubers require other ways of salvation from drying out.
Solution 1 . The meaning of this method of saving the root tuber lies in planting. We cut it by a third and disinfect the cut with coal, iodine or brilliant green. We fill the pot with earth, but not more than half the height, and plant the prepared tuber in it.
When the kidney, initially not exceeding a height of 1-2 cm, begins to grow, the soil will have to be constantly poured little by little. If this is not done, then the roots that appear above the tuber simply will not grow or will turn out to be weak and short, which will affect the state of the new nest, which in dahlias is formed on top of the old one.
Solution 2 The essence of this method of nursing is cuttings . It is possible when a weak tuber has the strength to immediately give 3-4 sprouts, with which you can both preserve this variety and rejuvenate the tuber itself.
Grasping the sprout as close as possible to the place of regrowth, we break it off, dip the cut into the “root” so that the drug does not get on the bark, and plant it in a pot with light sandy soil, which excludes jamming. It remains to water the stalk, cover with a transparent cup to create a moist environment inside and wait for it to take root. Usually this happens easily and quickly, so that by the time it is transplanted into the ground, the plant already reaches 3-5 cm and has 2-4 leaves.
About the causes of early germination of corms
The reasons lie in the conditions of storage of planting material. The fact is that the dormant time of gladiolus corms consists of two periods - a period of natural dormancy, which lasts about 40 days, and a period of forced dormancy, the length of the latter depends on storage conditions.
The appearance of sprouts is possible only during forced rest. Increased humidity and heat during this period of plant life stimulate the onset of growth processes.
Let's recall the optimal storage conditions for gladiolus corms: the air temperature is not higher than 10 ° C, and the humidity is in the range of 60-70%.
What can early growth processes lead to?
The young sprout is actively lengthening, while the roots are not yet formed. The roots are not immersed in the soil - a source of nutrition and moisture. As a result, the plant is greatly depleted, and planted in the ground, as a rule, does not form an arrow, does not bloom.
What to do?
The opinion that sprouted tubers should be placed in the ground for further growth is erroneous, since the lack of sunlight and energy in the early spring will not allow corms to mature enough, develop and bloom at the right time. It is unlikely that such plants will be able to wait for flowering.
So, let's list the correct actions:
- sprouted bulbs must be well dried, for this they are laid out for two to three weeks in a dry and warm place;
- then they should be sent for storage to a place with low air humidity and a temperature not exceeding 5 ° C;
- within two to three weeks before planting in open ground (in each region this is its own time), the planting material should be at a temperature of about 15 ° heat, this will prepare the corms for awakening and further germination.
What conclusions can be drawn
The first is to provide the plants with the right storage conditions. The second is to conduct a regular and thorough inspection of the planting material during its storage, in order not to miss the moment when corms begin to germinate.
I line my gladiolus corms (a small amount) with paper napkins, put them in a closed plastic box from under the cake and send them to the bottom shelf of the refrigerator for storage. This is how I store gladioli of local zoned varieties.
Harvesting gladiolus corms- one of the important moments in the life of gladioli. 40-50 days after flowering, the full maturity of corms occurs, in terms of time it is approximately mid-September.At this time, you need to start digging. It should not be delayed, as cool and damp weather with sharp fluctuations in day and night temperatures contributes to the development of diseases.
Cleaning starts from those varieties that have faded earlier. Plants grown from tuber buds are harvested last. It is better to dig up gladioli with a pitchfork - there is less danger of damaging the corms.
dug up plants pulled out of the ground by hand, gently shaken off and placed on a tarpaulin or plastic wrap. Sick corms are immediately discarded and burned.
When harvesting, the stem is cut off under the base of the corm or leave a small stump (0.5-0.7 cm). Then 1-3 days are dried in the open air, spread out in a sunny place in good weather.
To avoid fusarium, which very often affects gladioli, after digging or drying, the replacement corm is separated from the mother, cleaned from the roots, upper covering scales and the tubers are separated. After digging, this is easy to do, later there is a danger of damaging future planting material. Then the corms for 30-60 minutes pickle in a dark solution of potassium permanganate and thoroughly dried.
For this placed in gauze or nylon bags and hung under the ceiling of the kitchen, where it is always warm and dry. First, 2-3 weeks they are kept at a temperature of 25-30 degrees, then 3-4 weeks - at room temperature. The faster the corms are dried, the better they are stored in the winter.
Babies separated from the corm, together with crumbling earth, is placed on a plastic wrap and dried in the shade. Then, to screen out the remnants of the earth and reject the smallest tuber buds, from which weakened plants usually develop, they are passed through a sieve with 5 mm cells.
Before storage once again inspect the planting material. Sick corms are discarded, in weakly affected ones, diseased tissue is cut out and covered with brilliant green.
Store corms at a temperature of 5-7 degrees and relative air humidity of 70%. It is undesirable in the cellars, where the temperature is too low. Before the onset of frost, you can keep it on glazed loggias in paper bags or cardboard boxes, shifting it with newspapers, and then transfer it to the refrigerator, placing it in the fruit compartment.
Before sending to the refrigerator corms are slightly dried and wrapped in newsprint. Several of these bundles are wrapped in thicker paper. 4-5 holes about 1 cm in size are made in it for ventilation. They are placed in a plastic bag, in the lower part of which 5-6 holes are also made. Once a month, the corms are inspected - the diseased ones are removed, the damp ones are dried.
If after excavation it was not possible to separate the mother bulb from the replacement bulb and remove the roots, this can be done 5-7 days after complete drying.When cleaning, only the uppermost covering scales are removed. It is not necessary to remove all scales, as this will lead to falling asleep of planting material.
Gladiolus sprout, what to do in this case
It happens that in early spring when the dormant period ends, the gladioli germinate - the roots develop, the buds wake up, the sprouts stretch out, and it is too early to plant them.When the roots have reached 2 mm, they are carefully broken off at the base, and the broken places are sprinkled with crushed coal. Sprouts more than 2.5 cm, developed from the kidneys, are carefully cut out with a sharp knife. Slices are smeared with brilliant green, allowed to dry. Then finely crushed charcoal is rubbed into the wounds.
Removal of roots and sprouts is a necessary measure. It allows you to avoid wasting nutrients, keeping them as much as possible in the corms for spring planting.
N. Ya. Ippolitova, candidate of agricultural sciences
