gladiolus carneus blooming

Not blooming a lot, but it has produced a blooming spike from tiny bulbs that I received in Nov. I had held out virtually no hope, but surprisingly, I do have lots of good foliage. Very sweet. Patti

Oh so pretty! Thanks Patti for posting that, did you get any other species?

I only have Gladiolus communis ssp. byzantinus and Gladiolus callianthus and Gladiolus x colvillei but I won't see any blooms from these until summer (hopefully). I have a lot of
hybrids and butterfly ones too to plant when we get some warmer weather. Patti

The byzantinus should flower sooner, mine are tall now and mostly flower by the end of May. It's such a shame more species are not easily available!

I planted my hybrid giant flowered glads, only 25 of them but that was hard work!

Wallaby1, I will get out my trusty electric drill with the bulb auger attachment and (most importantly) my DH to run it while I do the planting . I think I over did the gladiolus bulb orders, as I have no less than several hundred. I am afraid to count. But I will plant them at two week intervals from mid May until late June, so I get extended bloom time from July into late Sept. To think I use to hate them, but I planted some last year and totally became a fan.
I ordered a bunch of luscious brown toned ones for my chocolate garden. I am most excited to see those bloom with the brown iris. Patti

This message was edited Apr 17, 2007 6:41 PM

All things come full circle.......how many of us have shied away from beautiful plants just because our parents had them!!!!! Hydrangeas is another one.

I've been eyeing up the brown ones too, colour fashions should be illegal. Beauty doesn't follow fashion!

I hope you don't damage your back with all that bending!

The other day, I actually found someone else whose favorite color is brown. (Now we are a group of two!) And browns in the iris and orchids families are particularly enticing.

If you like brown Lefty, take a look at my thread on Arisaemas on the Aroid forum!

Sorry Patti for the diversion, but brown can be VERY exciting!

There is a Glad that is offered in my Glad catalogue which I was tempted by, Mileesh, a choice tan and cream smokey. Perhaps next year, couple with a cream glad, Mmmm chocolate swirl.

Bring on the brown lovers! If I could grow orchids (rather than just buying them in bloom) I would have lots of brown spidery ones. I lurk on the orchid forum daily for my fix. Far cheaper than playing the orchid game ! Here are some of the brown glads I have ordered. Patti

AFRICAN BEAUTY Uniquely colored bronzy brown blending a bit lighter towards the center with a light yellow pencil stripe on lip and lower petals.
GINGER SNAP Uniquely colored medium tan with an eye-catching white petal edging
OLIVIA A rich deep black brown with a little deeper throat and a silver white picotee around the petal edges.
SCRIMSHAW An unusual color, the outer edges are brown blending to a cream throat overlain with rusty red lip petals.
FUDGE Rich, deep smoky brown
BROWN BEAUTY . Brown Beauty is a ruffled, rich deep brown with a contrasting orange-red throat.
CHOCOLATE lightly ruffled, rich chocolate brown
CHOCOLATE RIPPLES A reddish chocolate with cream veining throughout.

Now I'm upset, not one of those are in the catalogue! The taste in glads here seems to be on the conservative side, lots of pinks and apricots with some reds and blues and whites.

They all sound gorgeous! Where did you get them from Patti?

Patti

Thank you for helping me ID mine! I got them last year but forgot to label, they are blooming now.

I am very, very happy with them.

Erin

Erin, I am happy that you have blooms. My plants are so weak that these are unable to stand up. But I do love the delicate flower. Patti

Patti,where did you find your bulb auger?
Thanks.

I bought one on line on sale last fall. We planted 2500 bulbs before hitting a rock and having it break. It was a cheap one, about 15.00. It came in two pieces, which I would avoid. But it did the job. I then saw many choices in garden stores. We picked up a beefy one for around 20 dollars at an Agway farm store. I would make sure it has a min of 2 1/2 in diameter if you plant big bulbs and with a min or 18" length. Here is one I saw on line that looks good. I would try and find one to see it in person to see if it is hefty. But lots listed on line. Patti

http://www.yardlover.com/products.php?pid=77712078