The ornamental plants in general, and specially the gladiolus, are susceptible to variations of the soil water level. The effects of different soil water tensions on growth and production of gladiolus were evaluated in an experiment carried out in a greenhouse located in Lavras, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. These effects were characterized during the stages of vegetative growth, pre-flowering and flowering by analyzing plant height, floral stem length and number of flowers. The experimental design was completely randomized in a strip outline of four levels of soil water tensions (15, 25, 40 and 60 kPa) on each growth stage, totalizing twelve treatments and six replications. The results demonstrated that plant height, floral stem length and number of flowers were reduced by increasing the levels of soil water tension with higher effects during the stages of vegetative growth and pre-flowering. The best results in terms of plant size, length of the floral stem and number of flowers were obtained maintaining the level of soil water tension close to the field capacity.
Gladiolus x grandiflorus; irrigation; growth analysis
