Gladiolus... When will they flower..?

Hi.. I have planted 5 gladiolus bulbs in a large container with good drainage. And have popped a dahlia slap bang in the centre.. The plants are doing OK but I wonder if I've overdone it and crowded the situation a bit.. The glads are nearly 2 feet tall and the tall sharp leaves are starting to bend... And the dahlia is also around 2 foot tall and has already got lots of bids on it... I am feeding tomorite half strength once a week... Are my glads going to eventually flower or are they late.. Have I overcrowded the pot? And what would be a good food for them?

 

Some of my leaves are bent i put small canes on them, mine are a few weeks away from flowering this is some of them at the moment.

 

They are not late and they should flower eventually.
This year, particularly, has been a strange one weather wise and I have found that some plants are taking their time to flower. I really wouldn't expect the glads to be flowering just yet anyway.

 

I forgot to put mine in .. bunged them on top of a pot last week and shoots now breaking through so don't fret.. mine will flower when frosts come in no doubt

 

This is just what I've been looking into. The dahlias Ive been looking at grow as tall if not taller than the gladioli. I was hoping for tall flower in the middle and bulbous flowers around the outside. What sort of things should I be looking at?

G.

 

July, August time period. I don't plant them, as they will need staking some, or might bend over. however, did run across a smaller variety, same family I use in my garden as like a spot of color, they stay upright and bloom in June.

 

Ive pulled all mine out they flop all over the place and forever supporting them and they soon multiply.

 

Whether they flower this year depends on the variety - some flower in the first year and some in the second year.

So don't be too disappointed if they don't flower this year - there's probably nothing wrong - you should have a smashing display next year .

 

these are the type I put in, this summer will be their 2nd year. https://www.highcountrygardens.com/flower-bulbs/hardy-gladiolus-nanus-mix

 

If I bought Glads and they didn't flower first year I'd want my money back.
The corms should flower first year.

 

The size of the corm also makes a difference - a small corm can take maybe 1 or 2 years to flower - they need to be a good size

 

Well i've never bought Daffodils that didn't flower first year, neither tulips or hyacinths.

Summer bulbs/ corms are the same if you buy them from a reputable supplier they will have been grown on up to flowering size, often the hardest part is getting some to flower the following year.

Glads are not the kind of plant that needs to establish like maybe perennials, where they need to get their roots down, if they dont flower first year, IMO you've been sold some duds.

 

The OP is from July 2016

 

Ooops....

I do this all the time on other forums - but at least I'm not alone

I wonder if they flowered