Glads for hardiness

Diane Whitehead voltaire@islandnet.com
Wed, 07 Mar 2007 11:00:38 PST
  Max Withers wrote:
In (my part of) California we are more likely to have problems with  
insufficient chill than too much of it,
=================

Max, you have reminded me of something I read about some bulbs (?)  
that grow in the SE U.S.  I didn't pay much attention because it had  
no relevance to me, so I can't remember which plant it was.   
Apparently some plants native to Florida have the ability to  
withstand excessive cold.

Some of the South African bulbs, including gladiolus, that were in  
bloom at the beginning of September when I was there, have an amazing  
ability to withstand great swings of temperature.  We had snow on a  
couple of days.  In one area, the temperature was minus 8 Celsius at  
night and plus 20 Celsius the next day. (that's 19 to 68 Fahrenheit).  
It certainly wasn't dry in the winter. There were large areas under  
water, and we had to ford many streams running across the roads - I  
was afraid the car might not like getting its engine wet, but it  
never stalled.

I think these bulbs have great potential for adaptability, though  
maybe they won't like my boring coastal conditions - the other day we  
had a high of 7 C and a low of 7 C.  Where's the fun in that when  
you're built to withstand high desert conditions?


Diane Whitehead
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
maritime zone 8, cool Mediterranean climate
mild rainy winters, mild dry summers




More information about the pbs mailing list