Flowering responses of Gladiolus tristis (L.) after exposing corms to cold treatment

The influence on the subsequent growth and development of Gladiolus tristis after exposing the corms to low temperatures was studied. Corms stored for 3 or 6 weeks at 5°C and 90% RH flowered 20 and 11 days, respectively, before the controls, while the length of the flowering period increased by 35 days after the longer storage period. The vegetative and quality parameters of the gladiolus flowering stem were similar to those of the control, except that flowering stem and spike lengths increased after 6 weeks of cold treatment.