Here is a video of the engine. There are marks on the ball to make it's rotation easier to see. You will notice that at the start I hold the ping-pong ball in my hand very briefly so the liquid nitrogen will boil and start the rotation quickly.
They can be planted in the spring around your last frost date. Gladioli bloom about 90 days (three months) after they sprout in spring, so the bloom time really depends on when you plant them. In warm climates, where they stay in the ground year-round, gladioli bloom anytime from late spring (deep South) to midsummer (middle South).
Spring is a great time to plant daylilies, just wait to plant until after the danger of hard frost has passed. Fall is another good season for planting, try to finish planting 4-6 weeks before your first hard frost. You can plant earlier in the spring or later in the fall if you take care to water and mulch your newly-planted daylilies. In most areas, you can plant daylilies in the summer (here at our nursery we plant straight from March through October), just be sure to give your newly-planted daylilies plenty of water.