Effect of GA3 and Growing Medium on Growth, Flowering and Com Production in Gladiolus

The experiment was conducted to find out the effect of GA3 and sand on gladiolus cv. Congo Song. Results showed that most of the vegetative, floral and stock production parameters were influenced significantly by pre-planting soaking of corms in gibberellic acid (50, 100 and 150 ppm) for 24 hours as well as planting them with (S1) or without (S0) sand dressing. The higher levels of GA3 (100 or 150 ppm) in both the media-sand (S1) or soil (S0) resulted favourable influences on most of the characters studied. Interaction of GA3 (150 ppm) with sand dressing (G3 x S1) resulted maximum number of sprouts and the earliest spike emergence, thickest plant, longest unopened floret and the highest yield of spikes/ha; while 100 ppm GA3 with sand (G2 x S1) resulted the wider placement of floret, corm and maximum yield of corm/ha. The combination of 150 ppm (GA3) with no dressing of sand (G3 x S0) resulted in maximum number of leaves/plant and number of opened fresh florets at a time. As compared to planting without sand dressing (S0), application of 100g sand beneath the corm delayed spike emergence, hastened the colour break in terminal floret and increased the number of sprouts/mother corm, number of leaves/plant, girth & height of plant, length of unopened floret, placement of florets, number of opened fresh florets at a time, total yield of spikes & daughter corms/ha and number of cormels/plant.