3,226 Garden Web Discussions | Dahlias
It's true that dahlias have no natural pests or predators, but they can be susceptible to other pests. I've got some planted near rosebushes (a dumb move on my part!) and I keep finding beetles eating holes in the leaves and moving into the buds. We've gotten some beetle spray and will probably get a beetle bag soon to keep them away.
However, you've got box elders, not beetles. I do not know how exactly to combat them, but look into ladybugs. You can buy them by the thousands for roughly ten dollars. They eat several garden pests, and they're kind of nice to have around (granted, they sell them in such large numbers because likely half of your purchase will just fly away)
Your wet June and what sounded like few days of sunshine with it didn't help much, but it sounds to me like your "cutting back" was the main issue. Try to avoid leaving a hollow stem. Pinching the center growth tip off the main stalk/s will suffice. Just once is all I do. Your fertlizer, sun, soil all else sounds perfect especially since they look healthy.
I hope you'll get some nice hot summer now. One other thought: was the fertilizer slow release or more short acting? If not slow release, you might consider applying another dose to each plant and see what happens. Also adequate watering 1-2x weekly will do wonders.
Hope you have some laterals taking off so you can hope to see some blooms. Our neighbor dog snapped one off here so the stalk was just 4" tall, but the side shoots have taken off and are coming along just fine. Where there is green- there is hope! Let us know how they come along.
Well, I have put down some Tomato Fertilizer today, we will see how it goes! Keeping my fingers crossed. I do have some buds, one looks ready to open! I suspect some of my dahlias will not get a chance to flower this year, perhaps I put them too far back and in the shade, but I have at least 5 that "should" flower in the next week or so, and all my mini singles should flower soon too... We shall see, keeping my fingers crossed!
Thanks for the advise, and glad to hear I am not the only one having problems this year! I was raking leaves today, this is getting ridiculous!
ceh2101 Thanks for the info. You are almost in another zone on the South Shore. My friend in Marion has flowers way before I do. I didn't know about the temp for dahlias after they eye up. I will be more aggressive next year in getting them in. Will investigate lights as well as I have the perfect cellar but don't know what to buy to start plants indoors.
Is this the first time they've wilted, or do they wilt and come back to normal healthy appearance? Almost all of mine wimp, as I call it, during the heat of the day and then rebound as it cools off. Same goes for me ;)
Some things that have caused wilt and sudden death here are boring stem menace near the soil level. Rotting tuber (dig up, cut off rot and replant which may save the plant.) Broken or damaged stem. Vascular disease- see link.
If it stays wilted, I'd start checking your main stalk/s for damage or soft/discolored spots, foliage for suspicious developments, then if still no obvious causes, I'd unpot it as carefully as you can and check the tubers. Also consider over-watering which is hard to do in a pot, but possible.
Good luck.
Here is a link that might be useful: some dahlia diseases causing wilt
hi poochella. thanks for the reply.
yes, they wilt in the heat and then they usually rebound once evening rolls around. the one branch that i had to cut off was not supported and probably broke when it wilted.
i realized the ones that wilt also are sitting about 3 feet away from a parked car. i had a thought after i posted that perhaps they were getting reflected heat from the parked car and that caused them to wilt. dahlias that weren't placed near the car have NOT wilted. i'm going to move those pots right now.
also, re: watering. i usually water once i know the soil is dry, so that rules out any possibilities of overwatering.
FWIW, I had terrible luck with my tipped bi-colors last year and have dropped them from my varieties. A La Mode, in particular, was a significant disappointment with only one bloom being properly colored.
Most were as if the color had been in a plastic bag and wasn't squished in the center (but instead, to one side or another.) Some interesting mixes, but not what I expected.
YYMV (your mileage may vary...)
Good Luck
Cheers,
Russ
Hi goldennail,
I saw this plant in Lowe's yesterday. I liked it a lot but decided to look for some info online before buying. Couldn't find anything. How is your plan doing?
The label says "blooms spring to summer". Does it mean - spring through summer?
Thanks
I am in Zone 6a. Indeed, it is very unusual for your dahlia to have made it through the winter!
I had a couple tubers out in a cold frame this spring, one night the temps dipped just below freezing and that was enough to kill them.
However, there is much to be said for "micro climates". Your zone (5 or 6) is reflective of what is typically found around your area on a large scale. It is possible to find warmer "pockets" that do not experiance the same temperatures. Classic examples are along foundation walls of a heated structure, if enough heat radiates from the building, it could warm your soil enough to be the equivalent of a much higher zone.
Another possibility is if you heaped a lot of material on top of the ground, and it began to compost, the pile may have heated up / sheltered your tuber enough for it to survive.
Enjoy the flower, but if you want to keep it for next year for sure, I would dig it out in the fall!!
I am trying something new this year, that I've read as a recommendation many times before. I didn't pinch this year, but I am dis-budding.
Typically, when you see one bud on a branch, if you look real close you'll see 3 of them. Remove all but the center one. This is supposed to make for larger flowers. I also believe they'll be healthier flowers.
You'll find references to it on the sites mentioned, I beleive.
Cheers,
Russ
Well Corgi (I used to have one ), I want to thank you first but I have been taking the extra shoots that two eyes have caused and just put them in the garden and they are growing with no roots or tubers! We have had two days of sun this month!! I am worried.
FWIW, I am not pinching this year. I'm curious to see the difference it makes. So far Sayonara, Mary Jo and China Doll have all had at least one bloom. Mary Jo has ~15 on one plant, so clearly not pinching doesn't prevent them from blooming a lot.
What is interesting is that many of my large varieties (both tall and AA) have blooms starting, which I feel is soon all things considered.
Cheers,
Russ
ceh2101, how much area does the metal halide cover? I've ordered before from a place that sells compact flourescent retro kits for fish tanks. One bulb gives (using their accompanying reflector) 25,000 lux, which isn't sunshine, but it's brighter than the brightest midday shade. I'm sure the metal halide is better, but I'm not sure I could afford it. A kit with bulbs for a 4'x2' area would run a little over $100. I might give it a try.
Sorry about no responses, dahliadad. What should you do? Let them grow would have been my input.
About keeping sale tubers over til the next season, I don't know. I think it's best to plunk them in the ground, even if late or crowded. You always have a chance at progeny to grow the next season then, even if you don't get blooms.
That "worm" is a ladybug larva, a good guy...the holes you see are probably from a cabbage white or other larva. I suggest you go get some natural pest control, since the ladybug larva is there. Contact your local nurseryman, and ask for a non toxic form of pest management, good luck
I don't know how to post pictures. Steve in Baltimore County.
Soil test should be done and then set up fertilizer program based on the results. Without a soil test, there are two choices: (1) if you are growing dahlias in an area that has not been fertilized in several years, use the 10-20-20 that the others recommend. (2) if the area has had lots of fertilizer applied in previous years, use only a high nitrogen product. A typical lawn formulation (without weed killer) would do well. Urea 46-0-0 is the farmers best source for nitrogen and is used by many dahlia experts.