When plants wane
At the end of the growing season, caladiums can be left in the
garden to be killed by cold weather. If you have the time, however,
it's not difficult to lift and save the tubers for planting again
next year. (Tubers in south-central Florida and extreme southern
Texas can be left in the ground to over-winter.) Lift tubers before
the leaves have lost all color and before soil temperatures drop
below 55 F. Retain the foliage, and sort them by color or variety.
Spread them out in an area protected from rain and cold, and allow
them to dry for a week. Cut or pull the dry foliage from the tubers
and remove all dry soil. Place the tubers in a mesh sack or saw
dust and store them where the temperature does not fall below
65 degrees F.
Diseases/problems
The most common problem is not providing a really warm environment
to start the tubers, and losing them to rot. Soil and air temperature
needs to be between 70 and 90 F.
The only pest that
I've had trouble with is slugs. Vigilant hand-picking and non-toxic
remedies like Sluggo or Escar Go! (Gardensalive.com)
should control the problem.
(See Linda's July Garden Edition
on slugs.) Caterpillars can also be hand-picked or controlled
by applying the parasitic bacterial products Dipel or Thuricide.
Insecticidal soaps can be used to control soft bodied insects
like aphids and whitefly nymphs.
On-line sources of
caladium bulbs
Happinessfarms.com
(and an excellent source of information) Caladiumsonline.com
(Bates Sons & Daughters, Inc)
Caladiumworld.com
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Linda
Coyner is a gardener/journalist who planted her first seed in
New York soil. She trained as a landscape designer at the New
York Botanical Garden and was a tour guide at its Enid A. Haupt
Conservatory. She recently said good-bye to her garden in Chappaqua,
New York, and a full-time job in book and magazine publishing.
These days Linda lives in Naples, Florida, where she's a
Florida Certified Nursery Professional and delighted to be gardening
year-round as well as writing about plants and flowers.
Linda can be reached by email.
