'Glad' Thoughts for the Past, Present, and Future

OK, so Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and I am "glad" and thankful for many gardening memories, activities, and plans.

But the "glads" I'm specifically thinking about here are Gladioli, sometimes called Sword Lilies. They're highly hybridized these days, and the ones I usually plant are mixes, so I get a wide range of colors.

For many years, I planted them regularly, but then I lapsed for about a decade. My climate is a little too cold to leave them in the ground. While some might survive, it's not assured. So, to be safe and to gain plenty of plants for the next year, the "corms" must be dug up, stored for the winter, and replanted the following spring. I guess I just got lazy, and then I kind of forgot about the joys of Gladioli...

But the thing is, the process isn't that hard! It's kind of fun! If you start with a hori hori (the tool shown in the first photo and above--one of my favorites), it's easy to plant them in the spring (about five to eight inches deep). And then you can use the same tool to loosen soil around the corms in the fall, gently lift them, and bring them in for the winter.

For the past few years, I've been enthusiastically going through the motions!

In a previous post about Winter 'Bulb' Storage Made Easy, I shared a simple method of storing the Gladiolus corms in mesh bags for the winter (along with suggested storage for other "bulbs").



But before that stage, I simply lay them flat on newspaper or paper towels to dry out and cure. After a couple weeks, they're ready to have their stems and roots clipped, their old corms removed, and then to be stored until planting in April or May.



At the base of each corm, there are lots of little baby "cormels." Aren't they cute?!

In past years, I've simply composted the cormels, but this year I'm doing a little experiment: Based on my own thoughts and suggestions from Facebook friends (thanks!), I'm saving some of these little babies. Because they can take several years to get big enough to form blooms, some were fed to wildlife in the woods, some have been planted in warm garden spots (maybe they'll survive to bloom in future years?), and some will go into a big planter pot to make it easier to track their progress.



The photo above shows how an old corm from this year produced two new corms and some cormels.



Here's another view of how the cormels form at the base.



It's worth it to go through the digging, curing, storing, and replanting to gain these tall, colorful flower spikes--in the garden and as cut flowers for display.

Glads are definitely part of my past, present, and future. :)

For excellent descriptions of gardening with Gladioli in cold climates, from start to finish, visit these links:

Planting and growing

Lifting and storing

Warm and Cool Vases on Monday

I hadn't planned to do a post on cut flowers this week, because I simply cut the flowers and plopped them in vases. But the colors were so vibrant, I thought I'd share. The first vase includes mostly warm, vibrant colors that brighten their corner in the washroom.



A sprig of Dusty Miller (Jacobaea maritima) offers a bit of contrast.



'Zowie! Yellow Flame' Zinnias (Z. elegans) are the stars.



Also, a few warm 'State Fair Mix' Zinnias that compliment the color scheme.



Some sprigs of Lesser Calamint (Clinopodium nepeta) provide lacy structure.



False Sunflowers (Heliopsis helianthoides) frame the edges.



One warm spike of Gladiolus (G. grandiflora) crowns the middle.



And a few stems of Black-Eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta) offer structure and more warmth.



Next, I plopped the cooler-colored blooms in their own vase in a different washroom.



More 'State Fair Mix' Zinnias.



Many cuttings of 'Sensation Mix' Cosmos (C. bipinnatus), for their foliage and fabulous blooms, including white...



And pink.

Finally, I rounded up some Resurrection Lilies (Lycoris squamigera) and framed them with Ostrich Ferns (Matteuccia struthiopteris).

What's blooming in your garden and gracing your vases? Join the "In a Vase on Monday" meme over at Rambling in the Garden. Thanks to Cathy for hosting!

Plentiful Mounds of Hydrangeas

Do you prune your Hydrangeas? I admit I haven't been careful about the timing of this practice in the past, for various reasons. But this year they've been so full of blooms--more than I can remember in previous years. And one of our shrubs is next to the sidewalk, so it must be contained. Some sources I've consulted recommend pruning around August 1 to encourage blooms for next year.

So I'm focusing solely on Hydrangeas for this post. I piled a bunch of cuttings in a large glass bowl for display.



They make an interesting mounded arrangement.



I added the teacup to show the size of the mound, although it's hard to convey through a photo.



Here you can see the large glass bowl and the blooms spilling over it.



I also grouped a few of the blooms--some with a little more color--along with some foliage, into a small display vase in the family room. They're so pretty and elegant.



OK, I fibbed. It's not just about Hydrangeas. The Gladiolas continue, and I plopped three stems in a vase in the restroom. Gosh, these were easy arrangements. And the flowers keep coming...

I'm linking in with Cathy's In a Vase on Monday meme over at Rambling in the Garden. Head on over to see some amazing displays.

The Bright Blooms of July

The blossoms are lush on this Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. We've had plentiful rain and warm temperatures, and the plants are happy.

Once again, I'm limiting coverage here to one area, since there are so many things blooming. Items in this post are found on the sunny side of the house, in and around the potager garden.



The Purple Coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea) are plentiful and bright.



False Sunflowers (Heliopsis helianthoides) are blooming, budding, and brightening their space along the front porch railing.

Meanwhile, other blooms are nearing their completion, but beautiful still...



These include the Drumstick Alliums (A. sphaerocephalon), here poking up out of foliage of Blue Mistflower (Conoclinium coelestinum), which will bloom later this summer;



'May Night' Salvia (Salvia x sylvestris), which offers repeat blooms with deadheading; and

Hollyhocks (Alcea rosea), the current star of the mix. 



Always brightening their spots and welcoming monarch butterflies are the milkweeds, including Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa); and



Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), which has a lovely vanilla scent.



The Cosmos (C. bipinnatus 'Sensation Mix') I grew from seed will bloom until the first hard frost, providing plentiful cut flowers in the weeks ahead.



Joining them in vases and as repeat bloomers (with cutting) are the 'State Fair Mix' and 'Zowie Yellow Flame' Zinnias (Z. elegans). These are also hummingbird and bee favorites.



For some reason (too much rain?) the Lantanas (L. camara) dropped most of their blooms, but they're producing more buds. Shown here are Bandolero 'Pineapple' and Bandolero 'Guava' varieties.



Another bloom that will continue all summer (with cutting) is the Angelonia (A. angustifolia). This plant was mismarked, but I'm guessing it's Angeldance 'Fuchsia Bicolor.' I really love it and hope I'll be able to find it again next year.

Still other bloomers are just getting going...

Black-Eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta) add even more golden tones to the potager. I enjoy them in full bloom and at this stage, as the flower petals begin to unfurl.



Blazing Star Liatris spikes (L. spicata) share such a beautiful complementary lavender-blue to the group.



Finally, the Gladioli (Gladiolus Grandiflora hybrids) are just beginning to add their drama to the garden and in vases.

Thanks to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for hosting Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day! What's blooming in your garden?

Playing With Colors and Vases

I'm new to growing Dahlias, and I'm pleased with final outcome. They're certainly dramatic and colorful, aren't they?



I was getting impatient because it seemed like it was taking forever for them to bloom. Now that they've shown their faces, I'm thrilled. I can't tell you what specific varieties I have, because they were labeled "decorative mixed." I'm growing them in pots, with plenty of stakes because they're tall and branching--I didn't want them to blow over in the wind.

The first two to bloom (a fuchsia and a medium yellow) seemed warm and deeply colored.



I thought they'd work as very colorful companions with the yellow and fuchsia of 'Zowie' Yellow Flame Zinnia. It's hard to see here, but Zowie has a fuchsia-colored ring near the center.

So I lined them up in bud vases and played around with the vases and the flowers. It worked until the Dahlias began to fade to pastel tones.



At that point, I clipped a Mexican Sunflower (Tithonia) as a companion for the warm Zowie.



The yellow took its time opening, as if it was shy and afraid to show its face. I liked it in all its stages.



I especially like it here, in the aqua vase, with just a "lock" of a petal draping over its "eye" or disc florets.



The fuchsia faded to a bright, vibrant pink--equally at home out on the patio...



Or in its little bud vase in the house. Do you see the lovely tinges of yellow at the bases of the petals. Dreamy, eh?

I don't know why it took me so long to grow Dahlias--I've enjoyed them as purchased or gifted cut flowers for years and years. All I know is that I will dig up these tubers after the growing season and plant them again next year. ... I'm in love.

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I'm linking this post to Cathy's In a Vase on Monday meme at Rambling in the Garden. My vases are very simple this time, but head on over to Cathy's blog to see creative cut-flower displays from around the world.