Evaluation of gladiolus cultivars with respect to flowering attributes in Darjeeling hills of West Bengal, India*

Thirty cultivars of gladiolus were evaluated to select the suitable cultivars for export quality flowers because the choice of cultivars is an important factor in export oriented commercial floriculture. The overall performance of cv. Jester among all the 30 cultivars were better in respect of production of largest size floret (14.42 cm). Cv. Candiman showed highest spike length (125.36 cm), more number of florets per spike (19.92), highest number of florets remaining open at a time (7.82) with maximum weight of spike (123.11 g). Cv. White Prosperity showed maximum duration of flowering (22.29 days), longest rachis length (92.28 cm) and highest field life (13.59 days) of spike on the other hand the longest vase-life (9.67 days) was observed with cv. American Beauty. Results revealed that out of 30 cultivars of gladiolus, cv. Jester, cv. Candiman, cv. White Prosperity and cv. American Beauty performed best and hence may be recommended for commercial cultivation in the North-Eastern hilly region.