Gladiolus x callianthus Lucky Star - Abyssinian gladiolus

The 'Lucky Star' Gladiolus is not like any other gladiolus: this classic New Zealand cultivar, derived from the Gladiolus callianthus, formerly known as Acidanthera murielae, has retained the wild elegance of its Abyssinian ancestor, its late flowering and its wonderful fragrance. This bulbous plant blooms from late summer to autumn, while its larger horticultural cousins are going dormant. Its tall flower stalks bear numerous graceful, triangular flowers with a pale yellow throat animated by a lavender-pink star. Their fragrance perfumes the September evenings and autumn bouquets. Relatively hardy in dry soil, this bulb can be grown in most regions like other gladioli, in fertile, moist, well-drained soil, and should be stored in winter.

The 'Lucky Star' Gladanthera, introduced around 1966 by Mrs Joan Wright, is a cross between the 'Filigree' cultivar and the wild Abyssinian gladiolus, the Gladiolus callianthus. It belongs to the Iridaceae family. It is a perennial herbaceous plant with a storage organ called a corm, which is a kind of globular, brown bulb. In spring, as soon as temperatures are warm enough, the corm produces long, sheathing, sword-shaped linear leaves, measuring about fifty centimetres. They are medium green, with parallel veins, slightly stiff. The flowering occurs late in most climates, from August to October depending on the region. Flower spikes, which can reach a height of 1.10 m (4ft), emerge from the foliage. Each spike carries 8 to 10 flower buds along almost its entire length, with cream-coloured petals. They open into 8 cm (3in) diameter flowers with a long tubular calyx. They consist of 6 tepals, with 3 larger overlapping ones, 2 lateral and one superior. These tepals are white, slightly tinged with pale yellow and highlighted by a pink-violet base. The flowers' fragrance is more pronounced in the late afternoon. This nectar-rich flowering is highly visited by pollinating insects. The corm of the Lucky Star gladiolus can withstand frosts of around -9°C (15.8°F) in dry soil. It should be lifted once the foliage turns yellow, then kept dry and frost-free during winter outside mild regions.

The 'Lucky Star' Gladiolus is easy to grow, both in the ground and in pots. It is an extremely graceful gladiolus, which pairs well with grasses like pennisetum, eragrostis or stipa, as well as simple annuals like centaurea or nigella, in a slightly wild, well-drained bed. This plant, with its very natural charm, far from the stiff and somewhat kitschy appearance of its Dutch cousins, deserves more than a row of stakes along the edge of a vegetable garden: plant it in groups of 20 bulbs next to gauras and linarias, for example. It can also bring life to a border of irises, which can be a bit dull after their spring flowering. Its slightly stiff foliage can be cleverly hidden by low plants with light foliage, such as nepeta or perennial geraniums. Elaeagnus ebbingei will provide a dark, neutral background that will showcase them while protecting them from the wind.