Thank you, Leo, for the good concrete advice. I look forward to your donation of seeds. Best regards, Dell >> I would like to try to grow some [species Gladiolus] >> ...actually, all of them - but I don't know quite where to begin. >> Would any of you who have had success with this genus be so kind as to >> share some cultivation tips with the rest of us? > > Hello Dell, > > I've been out of town for a week and am attacking the shrubbery in my > inbox chronologically. > > The Glad species I've grown, both summer and winter growing, have been > pretty easy once they germinate. But - I live in a very different climate > from you. I hope you've received information from people who have to grow > the winter-growers indoors. Also, there must be many different approaches. > > Here, so long as temperatures are correct, they grow easily outside in > pots. Fresh seed sprouts well if kept very moist to very wet for some > weeks. The winter growers seem to prefer a few weeks in the ground of warm > days alternating with cool nights to sprout best. > > I had poor results until I began keeping my seedling pots very wet. Much > of what I read warms of rot if kept too wet. With my low humidity that has > never been a problem, and drying out has been much more a problem. > > I use deep pots for all my bulbs; my seedlings do best in 20-ounce foam > cups, which are 3" wide at the top and 6" tall. (7.5cm wide x 15cm tall.) > One drying out at the wrong time may be fatal for seedlings. I also use a > soil with very little organic matter. > > Most of my winter bulbs grow much better if fertilized weakly and > regularly during their growing season. > > In my absence my Hesperantha vaginata seems to have set three fruits > though it was the only example of this genus flowering at the time. I > should have some seed of this and hand-pollinated Babiana sinuata for the > exchange before long. > > Leo Martin > Phoenix Arizona USA > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/ >