The blooms should, immediately after the anthers have been removed, be covered with thin cheesecloth, or "bobinet," firmly tied or pinned in such a manner as effectually to keep out bees and visiting insects. Ordinary mosquito netting will not serve after it has been wet with dew or rain, as the mesh becomes so loose that energetic little pollen carrying bees force their way through, often entirely spoiling results. The pollen-bearing blooms should be carefully selected to open the same day and should be as well protected with muslin or fine netting as possible to prevent robbery of pollen.

About noon, when the anthers are covered with dry-dust-like pollen they can be pinched out with forceps and carried to the seed-bearing spikes in a covered dish to protect from wind. The anthers may be taken separately in the fingers, or with forceps, and lightly brushed over the stigmas, which should be erect and open if they have reached the receptive stage. One anther will usually suffice for a seed bloom if pollen is abundant, but in some of the lighter-colored varieties it is scantily produced and several may be needed. Occasionally the anther valves do not open freely enough to permit the escape of pollen, which may then be taken out with a narrow-bladed penknife, or better with a little instrument made of a flattened pin fixed in a wooden handle.

The pollinated blooms should immediately be covered with the netting, which should remain until they fade. If conveniences are at hand the work may be rapidly accomplished—several hundred pollinations being made in a single day by an active worker. Pollen can also be used from cut blooms, the spikes being kept in water in a light room, free from flies or bees, but it gradually loses power when the upper blooms open under such artificial conditions. If the work is carefully done the resulting seeds will produce hybrids or cross breeds as the case may be, and it is always possible that the ideal sought for may appear among the number. Pollen may be kept a week or more by drying in the shade and wrapping in paraffin paper, but is far less reliable than if applied fresh from the anthers.

The blooms of large garden varieties are rarely self-pollinated, even if left uncovered, but the chances of fertilization with inferior kinds, generally the most abundant pollen producers, are so great that it is well to protect all seed-bearing blooms from insect interference. If the work is to be done on a large scale sleeves of netting or muslin large enough to enclose the entire spike will be found serviceable. The ends may be drawn together by cords looped through the fabric, effectually barring out the meddling bees. If a greenhouse structure or even a well lighted room is available, the plants may be grown in large boxes or pots and taken inside when blooming. This is especially desirable in the case of rare species and varieties, as there is no interference from stormy weather. Every bloom can be pollinated and practically every grain of pollen utilized under these secure conditions.



CHAPTER III.

Special Care of Seedlings.

Rare or scarce gladiolus seeds, particularly those resulting from difficult crosses, should not be risked under ordinary garden or field conditions of growth. We naturally wish to bring to maturity every possible plant that the ideal we are breeding for may not be lost, if it should by chance be included in the number. If grown in pots or boxes the first season, with due care every good seed is likely to produce a vigorous bulb that may be planted out next year. I have found six-inch standard flower pots, after many trials, to be the most convenient receptacles for small quantities of seeds, though almost equally good results may be had from well drained wooden boxes five inches deep. The boxes may be a foot or more wide and 18 to 20 inches long, and should be new and clean.

On no account grow gladiolus seeds or bulblets successive years in the same pots or boxes without sterilization, lest disease be fostered. Sterilization may be effected in the case of pots, by roasting an hour or more in an oven at a temperature above the boiling point of water, or by well soaking in bichloride of mercury or formaldehyde solution, described in a preceding chapter.[C] Boxes may also be roasted in the oven or soaked in sterilizing solutions, but it is best to use new ones if procurable. Boxes should have at least one-half-inch drainage hole to each sixteen square inches of bottom surface, as gladiolus seedlings greatly dislike waterlogged soil. An inch of pebbles, broken shells or sterilized potsherds should be placed in bottom and pot or box filled to within one-half inch of top with light compost made of two parts rich loamy soil and one part sand, well mixed together. Some very old fine manure may be used, but it should be confined to the bottom third of the receptacle and not come into contact with the seeds or resulting bulbs. The seeds previously rubbed free from chaff, should be thickly sown on the surface—one hundred seeds is not too many for a six-inch pot—and covered with one-half inch of clean sand. Water with a gentle spray until entire mass of soil is saturated, cover top with old burlap or bagging and place pots or boxes in a secure place where the temperature will not vary greatly from sixty degrees. But little more water will be needed until the plants begin to come up, which should be in about twenty days. A sunny situation in greenhouse or garden is needed to grow the seedlings to best advantage, but if in the latter, protection should always be given from beating rains as the tiny seedlings are very easily broken down during the early stages of their development. Water should be given with sufficient regularity to keep the soil constantly moist without becoming sodden and all weeds removed as they appear. The bulbs will mature in twelve to fifteen weeks from germination. Water should gradually be lessened as growth ceases and foliage begins to yellow until the soil quite dries out, when it may be passed through a sieve and even the smallest bulblet secured.

[Footnote C: Page 59.]

The little seedling bulbs, ranging in size from a wheat grain to a hazelnut, keep best in dry sand and should be sown next season like peas in drills in the garden. Some of the strongest are likely to bloom the second year and all should produce flowers the third. If seeds are sown under glass soon after ripening, in early October, according to foregoing directions, the bulbs may usually be ripened off in March, cured in sand in a dry warm place and planted out in May, thus securing a few blooms the following Autumn, one year after gathering the seed. Most of the bulbs thus treated should attain blooming size by the end of the first season. If only a few seeds of a rare variety are obtainable, very porous compost in five-inch pots or shallower boxes, the seeds sown near the edges, will give best results. The seedling gladiolus the first year is so slender and with such a small root system that considerable attention is needed to avoid excess moisture unless closely planted.

A useful modification of the above method is to replace the bottom of a box of convenient size with wire netting of one-half-inch mesh or less, sink it to within an inch of the top in the soil in a convenient sunny place in garden, fill with prepared compost, sow seeds and proceed in the described manner except that less attention will be required in watering than if entirely exposed to the air. Box and soil can be lifted out when the bulbs mature, the soil dried and sifted to secure every minute bulb. If a considerable quantity of seed is to be sown a board frame eight inches deep, with bottom lined with one-half-inch mesh netting, and sunk in the ground, will give complete security from moles and similar vermin. If ordinary poultry netting is stretched over the top, additional security against surface marauders is given. Hand hybridized seeds are too precious to risk in ordinary unprotected soil. Five thousand seedling bulbs may be grown in a frame 4x6 feet, if seeds are thickly enough sown.



CHAPTER IV.

Gladiolus Species.

The following list includes the most important Gladiolus species, as recognized by modern botanists. Many species formerly included in the genus Gladiolus are now correctly assigned to Acidanthera, Antholyza, Babiana, Freesia, Montbretia, Tritona and Watsonia. Most true Gladiolus species will hybridize together, under favorable opportunity, but all attempts to breed the above genera with Gladiolus, thus far, appear to have failed. The most important garden hybrids of Gladiolus, useful in breeding work, have been described in preceding chapters. An attempt is here made to note the height of each species, the season of bloom in the northern hemisphere, the native locality where known, and the approximate date of introduction to cultivation:

Gladiolus adlami, dull yellow with minute red spots, Transvaal, 1889.

" alatus, 3/4 ft., scarlet, yellow, June, 1795.

" alatus algoensis, 3/4 ft., orange, July, 1824.

" albidus, 1 ft., white, June, 1774.

" angustus, 2 ft., yellow, June, 1756.

" atroviolaceus, dark blue, purple, white, Palestine, 1889.

" blandus, 1-1/2 ft., flesh, June, 1774.

" brachyandrus, 2 ft., scarlet, whitish, Zambesi Land, July, 1879.

" brevifolius, 1-1/2 ft., pink, June, 1802.

" byzantinus, 2 ft., red, July, Turkey, 1629.

" campanulatus, 1-1/2 ft., light purple, May, 1794.

" carneus, 2 ft., flesh, June, 1796.

" caucasicus, Caucasus, 1842.

" cochleatus, 1-1/2 ft., white, red, March, 1829.

" Colvillei, 1-1/2 ft., bright red marked with pale purple. Hybrid.

" Colvillei, alba, white.

" communis, 2 ft., red, South Europe, 1596, July.

" communis albus, 2 ft., white, June, South Europe.

" concolor, 1 ft., yellow, June, 1790.

" Cooperi, 3 ft., red, yellow, September, Natal, 1862.

" crispiflorus, various, July, 1842.

" cruentus, blood red, white, September, Natal, 1868.

" cuspidatus, 1-1/2 ft., white, brown, May, 1795.

" debilis, 1-1/2 ft, white, May.

" decoratus, 3 ft., scarlet, yellow, East Africa, 1890.

" dracocephalus, 2-1/4 ft., greenish yellow with purple lines, Natal, 1871.

" Eckloni, 1 to 1-1/2 ft., pinkish white, densely red spotted, Autumn, South Africa, 1862.

" edulis, 1-1/2 ft., white, June, 1816.

" Elloni, white tipped with purple, 1890.

" festivus, pale rose, July, 1844.

" flexuosus, 1 ft., orange, June, 1825.

" floribundus, 1 ft., citron, July, 1788.

" Gandavensis, rich crimson, yellow, summer, hybrid.

" gracilis, 2 ft., blue, white, April, 1800.

" hastatus, 1 ft., flesh, May, 1846.

" hirsutus, 1-1/2 ft., pink, June, 1795.

" hyalinus, 1 ft., yellow, red, June, 1825.

" imbricatus, 1 ft., red, June, Russia, 1820.

" involutus, 1-1/2 ft., pink, June, 1757.

" Kirkii, 3 ft., rose, Grahamstown, 1890.

" Kotschyanus, light violet, Afghanistan and Persia.

" Leichtlini, scarlet, yellow, Transvaal, 1889.

" Mackinderii, 2 ft., red or yellow, 1905.

" Milleri, 1-1/2 ft., violet, May, 1751.

" Mortonius, 1-1/2 ft., white, 1837.

" namaquensis, 3/4 ft., orange, June, 1800.

" natalensis, 4 ft., scarlet, yellow, August, Natal River, 1830.

" ochroleucus, Transvaal.

" oppositiflorus, April, Madagascar, 1843.

" papilio, 2 ft., purple, yellow, South Africa, 1866.

" permeabilis, 3/4 ft., orange, June, 1825.

" primulinus, Primrose-yellow, East Africa, 1890.

" psittacinus, 3 ft., scarlet, yellow, S. E. Africa.

" pudibundus, 3 ft., rose, hybrid (G. blandus x G. Cardinalis).

" punctatus, greenish-yellow, brownish-purple, 1889.

" purpureo-auratus, yellow, purple, Natal, 1872.

" Quartinianus, 4 ft., yellow and red.

" recurvus, 2 ft., striped, May, 1758.

" Saundersii, scarlet, white, August, South Africa, 1871.

" segetum, 2 ft., purple, July, South Europe, 1596.

" sericeo-villosus, 3 ft., yellow, S. Africa, 1864.

" Salmoneus, 2 ft., bright salmon.

" tenellus, 3/4 ft., yellow, June, 1825.

" tenuis, 1 ft., red, June, Tauria, 1823.

" trichonemifolius, 1-1/2 ft., yellow, June, 1800.

" trimaculatus, 1 ft., red, white, June, 1794.

" tristis, 1 ft., brown, red, 1745.

" turicensis, Garden hybrid: G. Gandavensis x G. Saundersii.

" undulatus, 1 ft., pink, May, 1760.

" versicolor, 1-1/2 ft., brown, June, 1794.

" vinulus, creamy white, feathered with crimson, 1888.

" viperatus, 1/2 ft., green, white, May, 1787.

" watsonioides, 1-1/2 ft., scarlet, Mt. Kilimanjaro, 1887.



ADDENDA

Odd Notes From Many Sources.

Planting gladioli after potato or tomato crops is said to incur risk of scabby stock.

Parcel post has proven very satisfactory for shipping blooms, packed in this manner.

The pure yellow Primulinus Sunbeam when displayed with purple Baron Hulot is very effective.

Peeled bulblets require a warmer soil than the unpeeled ones, and for this reason, May 15 to 20 is about the proper time for sowing.

To grow giant flower spikes, plant in rows 21 to 30 inches apart and 7 to 9 inches apart in the rows; fertilize well.

Long distance crates for mailing cut blooms may be made of slats 3/4-inch apart, with end pieces 6 to 7 inches square, braced in the middle.

All spikes should be cut when lowest or first flower begins to unroll; spikes should be set in water for an hour or more before packing.

Constant cultivation creating a dust mulch is very necessary with these as with other crops in case of drought. Many overlook this.

Mrs. B. H. Tracy says that Liebesfeur or War, Mrs. Frances King, Pink Perfection and Independence make a wonderful color combination.

It is conceded that second or even third size bulbs of Mrs. Francis King will throw a better flower spike than bulbs of a similar small size of most other kinds.

When your flowers are coming on freely and weather turns warmer, don't forget that cuttings must be made more frequently, and Sunday work unavoidable.

Some Gladiolus bulbs can stand freezing, though frozen solid. If left in tight boxes or barrels and allowed to thaw out very slowly without handling or exposure to air they will not be seriously injured.

When the roots of the gladiolus have attained their full growth, the surface of the soil should be stirred but lightly, because of the danger of cutting the roots. Prior to that time, gladiolus bulbs will stand deeper cultivation.

Write your state experiment station for analysis of commercial fertilizer best adapted to the Gladiolus. If you contemplate shipping cut blooms, consult your commission man as to the most satisfactory method of packing.

Young bulbs from seven eights to one inch in diameter should, if given space when plants of about two and a half inches apart and well cultivated, produce a crop approximately half or more first grade bulbs and the remainder seconds.

One grower never plants gladioli the second time in succession on the same land. Dr. Van Fleet, the originator of Princeps, who distributed it through Vaughan's Seed Store, says that the variety should never be planted on recently manured land, but in a naturally deep, rich, alluvial soil.

When bulbs are worth only two cents or less and cut blooms selling at three cents net or over, stalks may be cut close to the ground, giving foliage much desired by the retail florist. This advice, of course, applies to other values whenever the flowers are selling well above the cost of the bulbs.

Gladiolus make roots freely outside in quite cool weather, therefore, may be planted as early in the spring as ground can be opened, sometimes certain soils may be heavily mulched with straw in fall and thus kept unfrozen for very early planting in March.

When cut blooms are selling for less than the value of the bulbs, great care should be used in cutting to leave four good leaves uncut as these are necessary to complete the growth and mature a healthy bulb. Two leaves or even three are not enough to finish and develop a first class bulb.

For all points south of the Ohio River and in the extreme south second grade bulbs, that is of diameter 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 inches have bloomed well out of doors. Mrs. Frances King bulbs of only 1 inch to 1-1/4 have produced well; America and Chicago White for best results need larger grading than King.

Watchfulness in winter storage is necessary. If bulbs are racked or shelved too deep and become moist, they must be thinned and turned or both; if they become too dry, as they will if your cellar or storehouse lacks moisture, you may put more layers in the racks, or spread newspaper over them or spray the floor of your storeroom as often as may be necessary to maintain proper moisture which can be told by feeling of the bulbs.

Those, and they are many, both Amateur and Commercial growers who exhibit blooms at Flower shows should remember that if spikes are cut when the lowest blooms begin to open and transported to the exhibition halls early and there, standing in vases allowed to open their blooms, will be much more perfect and free from that bruised condition shown by blooms which have not been cut until the flowers on the spikes were nearly open.

One reliable grower keeps his black hard-shelled bulblets in gunny sacks containing about one bushel mixed with about 20 per cent of fine dry earth. He has been quite successful in keeping the bulblets in this manner, and when so kept the shells do not harden to such an extent as to prevent sprouting of the kernel, as sometimes is the case when they dry out too much. This same grower believes in soaking the black hard-shelled bulblets for 36 hours in water just before planting, but no longer.

Gladiolus bulbs stored in bins should be turned every few days, especially after February, as this tends to prevent sprouting. They should not be kept in too warm and dry a place. It is best to keep them quite cool, the thermometer running as low as forty degrees Fahrenheit at times, and in an atmosphere of the ordinary cellar, which usually has some moisture. If they become troubled with green fly, sprinkle them with tobacco dust once a week.

Gladiolus bulbs stored in racks have been kept in good condition by close covering of double or triple thickness of newspapers, the bulbs being levelled off and the newspapers laid closely over the racks and kept close to the bulbs by loose strips of wood laid over them. Others have kept gladiolus bulbs in very good shape in old paper flour sacks, which contain half a bushel or three pecks of the bulbs (the bulbs being, of course, thoroughly dried out when tied in the bags). The natural moisture of the bulbs seems, by some kind of paper protection as mentioned above, to be conserved, while full and continued exposure to dry air seems to provoke scab as well as hardening of the outer skin of the bulbs.

It requires a good sized bulb of America to throw a first class spike and second size bulbs produce, when forced, a considerably smaller spike than the first size bulbs. The America requires a longer growing season than most other gladioli and continues its growth well up to severe frosts. Growers who wish to harvest the largest possible number of first size bulbs allow these to grow as late as possible, and then leave the plants on their sides for 36 or 48 hours, during which time the sap from the stalks seems to go into the bulbs, making them more firm and putting them into better keeping condition for the winter. This latter suggestion probably applies to all gladioli and not alone to America, as it is practiced by a good many of the best growers.

Growers differ a good deal as to the depth of the planting and width of rows. One very successful Ohio grower plants his bulblets and small bulbs fully six inches deep and in rows only two feet apart, pressing the dirt down very firmly over the bulbs. Such deep planting, he claims, secures cooler soil for the working roots and insures a better crop in case of dry weather. The same grower in planting hard shelled bulblets sows one pint to about three feet of row, making them very thick in the row, as he believes that the hard shelled bulblets, in germinating so close together, cause the hard shells of most of them to rot. There is convenience also in digging the crop which may be lifted in a mass. They also grow up so closely together in the row that they seem to choke out the weeds, thus saving hand labor.

THE END