Mainstays of the garden, gladiolus flowers in midsummer, supplying flowers and perpendicular construction to the garden in an extensive variety of colours. Gardeners in many areas of the Bay Region can make gladiolus bulbs in the bottom year round, even though these in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant-hardiness zones 7 and 8 should use a layer of mulch in autumn to shield them from temperature changes and freezes. The single time Bay Area gardeners should dig the bulbs is when they intend to transfer them to a place that is new.
Dig gladiolus bulbs in the autumn allowing sufficient time to ripen fully. Beginning in the periphery of a clump of bulbs, generate a garden fork or spade 7 to 8″ to the soil and pry up. Take care to not injure the bulbs as you dig.
Support the crops by the leaves and stems and shake them to get rid of the soil that is free.
Cut off the one to two inches over the bulbs using a knife.
Place the bulbs on a level surface to dry for 2 to three months. Dry them in a well-ventilated place and don’t cover them. Temperatures between 85 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit are ideal although not important.
Brush off any free soil together with your hands following the bulbs are dry. Do not rinse them. Lose delicate or any discolored bulbs.
Break off last-year’s bulb, which will be the shriveled and flattened construction beneath the bulb, together with the little cormels around the foot of the bulb. Dry the bulbs for yet another two to three times allowing the scars to seal.
Scatter the bulbs with bulb dirt and put them in fabric, paper or net bags for storage. Leave the tops of paper bags if possible,, and open hang the bags to ensure that air can circulate around them. Store in a place that is dry with temperatures below 40 degrees Fahrenheit but above freezing. Before you’re primed to put them in spring, leave the bulbs in storage.