How to get SA imported bulbs to adapt to Northern hemisphere

[Meleagris]

I have just received some gladiolus bulbs from Summerfields. Should I pot them up now, hope they think it is their autumn and then dry them off to restart them in our autumn?
How do other people do this?
Erle from Anglesey
North Wales

[Arnold]

Erle

If they are winter growing SA bulbs they would be coming into growth in or spring months.  It alwaya a challenge to switch hemispheres.

I'd pot them up and if you see growth try to keep as cool as possible.  Give small amounts of water.

[Uli]

Hello Erle,

You are lucky to live in North Wales to do the hemisphere swap with Gladiolus. If you pot them up straight away and water sparingly as Arnold recommends, they should start to grow straight away. I assume you refer to winter growing species?
As North Wales will not have a very hot summer, at least not very early in the season, your gladiolus will have a fairly long growing season before they will be stopped by the onset of warm weather. The rest is all about watching the plants, they will show you what they want. They may remain almost evergreen and then change into the northern hemisphere rhythm. It would be more tricky if they would not sprout. In that case they would need extremely careful watering and a close eye. Once they would decide to start growing they need more water. I would keep the pots out of direct sun in a cool place.
Hope that helps,

Uli 

[Meleagris]

Thank you both. We will see how it goes. I am not sure about being lucky to live in North Wales we are very short of winter sun!
Erle

[Michael Mace]

I have tried several different ways to acclimate South African-grown bulbs to the northern hemisphere:

• You can put them in the refrigerator, in a plastic bag, for six months and hope that'll hold them in suspended animation.
• You can pot them up dry and wait to see if they sprout, and then water them if they do. This is what Gordon S. recommended that I do.
• You can pot them up, water them, and hope they will adjust on their own.

I have had mixed results with all three methods, but I think 1 and 3 produce the lowest mortality here in hot and dry San Jose.

Good luck,

Mike
San Jose, CA

[Martin Bohnet]

Might be a bit late for that but I always try to order a few almost evergreens extra when swapping hemispheres to keep disappointment on acceptable levels - Cyrtanthus and Tulbaghia swap easily... other than that I try Mike's Nr 3 unless that species is known to tolerate skipping a year.

[CG100]

I am just outside of Leicester (UK). I have imported quite a few bulbs of numerous species from RSA over the past 3-4 years.

How any particular species reacts varies hugely (I always buy at least two of any species and they always react the same).
I try to order winter-growers in our mid winter and the opposite for the opposite. I pot-up and cautiously water them the moment that they arrive and keep JUST damp until the normal end of growing season irrespective of whether the show leaf growth or not.

So far as I recall, I have lost just one, which did make leaf, but not root - a Haemanthus (species - I would have to check a label).

Some species get in step with UK season immediately - they will make some growth immediately and go to sleep as you would hope here in the UK, some take up to 2 seasons to get totally in sync'.

Easiest, by far, Crinum. Slowest, probably Lachenalia, of all species. But that is just here and I have never imported Glad's, and have a few more new species/genera from last autumn that will need until the end of 2023 before I can comment with any certainty.