Hi,

Some of my Gladiolus have the rust fungus. any treatment?

I have like +200 bulbs and not looking forward to bin them all....

Thanks in advance

PA

On 15 Jul, 15:49, "P. Alves" wrote:
Hi,
Some of my Gladiolus have the rust fungus. any treatment?
I have like +200 bulbs and not looking forward to bin them all....

This is a lot of bulbs! It reminds me the nightmare I had with
hundreds of bellis perennis plug plants infected with rust (it wasn't
my idea to have one single lot of the same plant, I was a volunteer at
a community garden). Sadly I wasn't successful at getting rid of the
rust - I ended up with lots of plants with no leaves and the rust was
right a the chore of the plants ... I don't use chemicals nor do I
have a bed of 200+ bulbs, and there perhaps lies the problem. I make
sure I have a variety of plants in one single bed/area to deter
diseases.

I'm sure you already know that you need lots of air to circulate
around your plants, cut and burn all affected leaves, don't leave any
on the ground, sacrifice the bulbs on those that look most affected,
or the rust will overwinter and come back next year. With the wind and
rain we're getting at the moment, it is necessary to thin down
congested beds, clumps, trellis etc. to make sure diseases don't
develop in that humid atmosphere. Interplanting your gladiolas with
allium, corriander, thyme and garlic will help keep the rust away.