EFFECT OF SPRAYING WITH SALICYLIC ACID AND CALCIUM CHLORIDE ON THE YIELD CHARACTERISTICS OF CORM AND CORMLETS FOR THREE CULTIVARS OF Gladiolus X hortulanus L.

This experiment was carried out in the shade of the green network of the Department of Horticulture and Landscape, College of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Mosul, for the period from Apr. 11, 2019 to Sept. 30, 2019, with the aim of producing corm and cormlets in the summer of three varieties of Gladiolus X hortulanus L. They are: "Break of dawn" White flowers, "Espresso" with red flowers, and "Blue frost" with purple flowers after being treated with salicylic acid (SA) at 0 and 250 mg.l-1, as well as treatment with calcium chloride in three concentrations: 0, 500 and 1000 mg.l-1 by spraying them on the foliage twice. The Factorial Experiment conducted by RCBD. The results show that the red cultivar recorded the largest weight of the corm was 28.98 g, its volume was 34.01 cm³, its diameter was 4.94 cm, and the number of cormlets was 12.33. per plant, the size of the cormlets is 13.52 cm³. Spraying with salicylic acid at 250 mg.l-1 had a significant effect in recording the largest values for the corm diameter and their volume. Treatment with calcium chloride at both concentrations 500 and 1000 mg.l-1 resulted in a significant increase in the corm weight, its diameter and the volume of cormlets. The treatment with calcium chloride at 1000 mg.l-1 caused to record the largest values for the number of cormlets are 9.53 cormlet. pl-1, while the treatment with calcium chloride at 500 mg.l-1 increased of the corm volume is 27.68 cm3. The red cultivar plants treated with or without salicylic acid interact with calcium chloride at 500 mg.l-1 was gave the best grade of corms ranked 7.00 (Jumbo). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]