Introduction

• Cormous and tender herbaceous annual ornamental plant grown from seeds, corms and cormel or cormlets.
• Also known as ‘Sword lily’, ‘Queen of the bulbous plant’ and ‘Corn flag’. It is believed that originated from South Africa.
• Almost all colors are available except true green and black.
• Flower induction in gladiolus is autonomous and inflorescence initiation always follows a definite number of leaves usually 8-10.

Environmental consideration

1. Temperature:

• Gladiolus is a winter annual and cannot stand frost below 6 ⁰C (<6 ⁰C can cause chilling injury).
• It is a major factor influencing the number of days to flower in gladiolus. In temperate region, it is grown during summer or under protective cover.
• Temperature range for growing gladiolus is between 10-35oC while sunny weather with 15-25oC is best for gladiolus cultivation.

2. Light:

• Gladioli prefer high light intensities.
• Gladiolus seems more responsive to thermos-periodicity than photoperiodicity, however, the flower spike and yield is better in long day condition rather than in short days.
• Low light intensity is also the main cause of failure of flowering in gladioli. Fourteen hours light is desirable for appropriate phenological performance or activities.