On Mon, 13 Sep 2004 11:30:35 GMT, Pam Moore
wrote:

~I need advice on my acidanthera (new name; gladiolus callianthus).
~I think I have asked a similar question before but can't find a record
~of it.
~I have had some corms for several years. One pot has multiplied to
~two, but I only had one flower last year and so far this year plenty
~of leaf but no flowers appearing.
~Over the summer I have given them Phostrogen, tomato feed and lately
~Chempak's 0:10:10.
~They have not been repotted this year as previously they seemed to
~like to be pot bound.
~I don't have a position where they can have full sun all day, but one
~pot gets morning sun and the other afternoon.
~Any advice on what I should do now to get them to flower next year if
~not this.
~Do others of you have flowers yet? How do you look after them?
~Where am I going wrong?
~
Acidanthera are a pain for turning into lots of tiny cormlets at the
end of their flowering period. This means the following year you've
got tiddlers which only show leaf. Feed them, look after them (and
keep them frost free over winter) and you'll have bigger leaves next
year, and so on till they get back to flowering size, by which time
you'll have rather more than you started with...

It's best to buy new flowering-size corms each year till your original
potful are mature, then the cycle should be self-sustaining.

I've personally never managed to get even first year corms to flower
well - don't think they like chalk much :-(


--
jane

Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone,
you may still exist but you have ceased to live.
Mark Twain

Please remove onmaps from replies, thanks!