Behind the Times

I ordered some gladiolus corms in late winter, but when they were delivered the ground was still too cold for planting. I stored them in my basement “temporarily.” Unfortunately I completely forgot about them until early July. I stuck them in the ground not knowing if they would have time to bloom before frost. In mid-August it was a fun surprise to see them peeking up from among the other perennials.

In Zones 7-9, gladiolus corms can winter in the ground if they’re mulched, but in colder climates they need to be dug up before the first frost. My plants aren’t going to have time to die back and send their energy into the corms before frost, so they’ll just have to be content being one-hit-wonder annuals.