A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2005 Convince me

to keep my glads.

I love the flowers. I really do. I could really do without the mess they look like after a rain, or when the flowers are spent. What a mess. May be I didn't plant them deep enough? Does everyone's glads end up laying all over the place instead of standing straight up? My better half has already wacked down all the foliage along the front of the house - even though they weren't completely finished - it just looked so bad (messy) that I couldn't stop her. I really love the flowers - convince me to keep them. Tell me there's something I can do better next time...or something?

Are you staking them, Mary? That would help some...

Dianna

I did the 3x the widest part of the bulb for putting them in the ground. My leaves are still green but they bloomed later than yours so that might have something to do with it also. Remember that the new bulb forms on top of the old bulb so if they were close to the surface to begin with you may need to put a bunch of mulch on them to keep them underground. But then you know I don't know what I'm doing so these are just guesses.

Dianna, I sure did try. I mean, not individually, no. I had literally hundreds of glads. The ones I planted later, I did in a close range, so I was able to put 2 tall stakes on each side of the 'circle' and then tie a string around the whole thing...it still didn't help - they were still too top heavy. and they're now laying on my mums.

Even when they were blooming they were leaning over, or getting pounded by rain (it didn't take a very hard rainfall to knock them over) The ones laying on my mums are new - I just planted them this summer - and I made sure to plant them extra deep (I was afraid they'd rot I went so deep) because I saw how messy the other glads were that were blooming. Still didn't help. May be if I mulch up around the stalks a bit next time that would help? Like, mound the mulch around them? That what ya mean, T? That might help

But, I'm getting the feeling that it's just me with laying glads? Sounds like both of you still have glads that are pretty much standing tall. It's me! That's a good thing though...it means there's still hope

Nope, Mary. No glads here. I had some last year, but did a new gardener mistake for this area. I pulled the bulbs up. My aunt asked me why. I said I thought I was supposed to. She laughed at me and explained that they would have been all right. Hers come back year after year...(When I pulled them up, I left them in the outbuilding and the ants got them.)

It's about time she gave me some more. I think she will be separating them again soon.

Dianna

Aww..sorry to hear that Dianna. PM me your addy if you'd like - I'd be glad to send you some. I'm lifting them all to move them and need to do some thinning out, at least. I do think in some zones you have to take them in though....not sure how you store them - I think my dad used to put them in the fridge drawer...but not real sure they were glads now that I think back.

Thank you anyway, Mary, but my aunt will be thinning hers out soon and I will have all I need. When she thins, she is ruthless. I got a whole wheelbarrow of irises from her early this year when she went on a thinning campaign....My next door neighbor was happy. I shared with her...

I think can leave them in the ground when I plant them...

Dianna

Mary,

Our local farmers market has a grower that sells cut glads by the bundle. I asked them how they keep their glads so straight. The response is that they plant them in a trench and as they grow, the have a machine or tool that fills in the trench from the sides. As the glad gets taller, they support it with more soil.

If you've got hundreds, then that might be the only way to keep them vertical. It sounds like a lot of work. I love glads too, but I don't have the time to dig them up in the fall. If they don't over winter, they don't make it in my garden.

Mary, Mine did the same thing on a smaller scale as I only have 6. I will be moving them this fall up against a wall with some kind of fence in front of them so I can tie them and give them some kind of support.

I have to dig mine up so all mine are in pots. I mix them with Cannas the tall leaves hold them up. I also discovered this year tall coleus. I planted them in the middle of the pot and surrounded them with colues.

I have to dig up mine, zone 4 here. I left them in one year just to see if they would keep, not. I just use two packs of bamboo stakes from the dollar store for staking.

Believe it or not, *and we didn't*
my mom left some in too,
or she actually didn't realize
there were some more in there
or babies were off to the side
and snapped off when she was pulling them out,
we don't know but, those over wintered..

We're a zone 5 here.. and they grew..
and are just now starting to flower..
They seemed slower..
but she said she's going to leave them in again
and see what happens...

Last year, we had alot of rain, and they
got rust too.. and this year, maybe being dryer?? or left out, dunno but
they didn't get any of it, and very healthy...

She absolutely loves her glads..

Hey Mary,

Your zone 6 and the glads are up next to the house right? That makes that area a zone 7 most likely so you should be able to leave yours in the ground no problem I think. Again it's a guess based on what I think I've read around here. And I think maybe if you add some of that really good compost you have to that bed it will probably produce stronger plant next year and you'll be in good shape. You know I did stake up the stems when they were flower heavy. They leaned quite a bit at that point except for the baby. Next year I hope to have miniature snapdragons around their feet and sparkler allium in front of them and dusty millers in front of the allium. Hopefully that will give me a bed that is blooming from Febuary to October and has plenty of height variation and just really looks good. That's the plan anyway. I have no idea what will actually happen.

Mary, have you posted a pic of your glads? I would love to see them in such big numbers...

Dianna

Oh me too!!
Me toooooooooooo!!!

Weezie, I am in 5 too and my glads are all done bloomin'. I would love it if they were going now.

I want pics of everyones!

Oh sheesh sorry all - I don't *have* to dig up my glads here in zone 6 - but was planning on it because I'm planning all the flower beds now and need to move stuff around. If you'll remember this was my first summer at this house - so it was a wait and watch summer - figuring out what all I have and where I want everything. Right now the glads are in a row along the front of the house - beautiful when they bloomed - kind of. As soon as they started, they started leaning over - I gave up on getting pictures of them because most of them were flat on their faces by the time they hit bloom stage - I just couldn't keep up with em had I even had the time to try.




Nowhere near as impressive as it could have been had they been growing straight. Here's a small group I planted in June - may be 15 corms. You can see how it's not only all fallen over, but it's pulled the super duty stakes along with them


Thanks for all the help and convincing I'll try trenching next year and mounding alongside - the only trouble with that is, I'd have to re-trench every spring. But well worth it, I think, if I can keep up with it

Wow, I also love the idea of potting them with coleus and cannas - wowza! I'm definitely sold on that idea too! Thanks - knew I could count on you all to convince me to keep em!

First question Mary??

What is the sun ratio they get??
They look like they were getting shade
at some point from the house..

They like sun like all day, they
could handle...

What some of the problem, sorta looks like,
they were reaching for sun??????????

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm ya got a point there - so obvious I didn't think about it. The front of the house gets full sun from about 11 until about 5 (first pic)....the back of the house gets less, not quite as intense sun - full sun from sunrise until about 2ish (2nd 2 pictures). Those guys were leaning though - if you notice, the stakes are leaning right along with em - they were literally pulled over from the weight of the glads tops pulling them over. They started falling after we got a rain - and it wasn't like a pouring rain either - but from then on they just kept tipping over more and more. May be they gotta hold of some of Cindy's beam?

Maybe so. Have you thought about putting a fence in front of that area to keep them up better and then maybe something short in front of the fence. I bet that would look really nice!

Hey that WOULD look nice. With something in front of it - hadn't thought of that before - like the mums that are growing like gangbustas right now! Holy moley I had no idea they got so big/bushy. They rock. So, may be that's how I'll do them next year - great idea, thanks!

Sometimes it takes me a while to come up with an idea. With a fence you would not have to move the plants at all! Putting stuff in front takes the focus OFF the fence and on the flowers.

I really need mums. I have a couple of places in the back of the garden where I want big bushy plants but not until later in the season after the other flowers have bloomed.

I have some serious reorganizing to do in my yard and am putting my glads in a recessed area with a fence of sorts in front of them. They will get morning sun and quite a bit of afternoon but no real evening sun.

Yep, that sounds like a great idea. Triss, you can't believe how huge these mums are. I'm gonna put some pics over in blooming heaven. They're strangling my roses they're so huge - I had no idea. I think I planted 16 of them!

16 WOW! I was thinking of 1 or 2. Looking forward to the pic!