3,226 Garden Web Discussions | Dahlias

Thanks jroot. I will have to do this in stages as I don't have much sun yet. I might be able to rig something up in the cellar under the flourescent lights. I will have to get something high and than put the tubers on it to get them closer to the lights?

I am only at exit 65 misslucinda.

Do not divide the clump unless you see another eye beginning to sprout. Some varieties do not have as many eyes as others and commercial growers leave the three or so smaller tubers together with the one eye because the grower will do better with the additional tuber mass. Those tubers are probably somewhat small and one tuber may shrivel.

Dont worry so much just plant it as is and all those tubers will feed that one stem and maybe next year you can split it.
Bill 77 years gardening.

Ive purchased dahlias on line from Dan,s Dahlias.......Swan Island Dahlias........and corrolitos Dahlias.....had success with all three.

carol

I've not tried any of those but if you're in the UK then T&M are probably your best bet.

Good luck,

Here is a link that might be useful: T&M Dahlias

I would like to recommend Swan Island Dahlias located in Canby, Oregon. I have ordered for several years and the quality of the bulbs is extremely excellent and they produce beautiful plants and excellent bulbs in the fall! Good luck!

I find these guys are good value and reliable. And they have a good selection.

Best of luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Dahlias

well, they were in my crawlspace in the winter and it did freeze, but i don't think anything froze there.

i planted them in some pots just recently, it hasn't frozen and will not freeze (god i hope!)

so how much should I water them?

Dahlias don't like to be really "wet" or really "dry".

I find with mine, I water them so that the water pours out of the bottom of the pots, then I let them dry, even when the top of the soil looks dry, it is often not time to water again, I stick a finger tip in the soil and if it feels damp I leave it. Usually a dry top means it will need to be watered within 1-3 days...

If the tubers feel firm and solid, then chances are they did not freeze.

I watch lots of Gardening Shows on DIY network.
HGTV sucks.

Exciting update, Sewobsessed has made it SO Easy to participate with a blog just for this campaign. See you there on April 13th. Thanks for the support!

Since Cory can't- the Garden Web considers that advertising-- let me direct you to the Wynne's Dahlias website where you can find weddings where Cory has used dahlias. I especially like the one where she used a single huge dahlia for each of the wedding party bouquets- a very inexpensive boquet for the bride & her bride's maids. She also made centerpieces using one dahlia & in one of the weddings she made dahlia topiaries using those strong-stemmed Wynne dahlias!
Ellie

Here is a link that might be useful: Dahlia Albums

thanks for all the tips, poochella & sturgeon, i truly appreciate it! and thanks, too, for the link to cory's album, ellie. i also love how simple the single dinnerplate dahlia is as a bouquet! it's such a great idea and very budget friendly.

i am off to go order some tubers now!

People use many terms, and often they don't mean the same thing to different people who use them.

I grew all my Dahlias last year (~200) in 4" pots. They started indoors, and were planted in the beds that way (~4" below the surface of the soil.)

The result was a lot of difficult to separate tuber clumps. Granted, they were much easier to lift in the fall, and all plants grew to expected sizes.

The idea, as I read it, was to store the tubers in their pots over the winter, and in the spring bring them out to have them start sprouting. The sprouts would then be taken as cuttings and an entirely new plant started (or many.) The original pot tuber could be planted, thrown away, eaten, etc...

Separating tubers is needed if you don't want to take cuttings, but do want more plants next year from those you grow this year. If you learn how to take cuttings, the tubers themselves will be redundant when you come to plant out.

Cheers,
Russ

Thanks so much for the further info.

Russ, that is a very interesting point about the cuttings. I actually am growing some cuttings this year and having really good luck with them! I don't know if you have been following my saga with some tubers I recieved from my mother in law last year, but to make a long story short, they where very badly mistreated and did not store very well overwinter. I was very fortunate to have 4 tubers out of about 15 sprout, 3 of which provided viable sprouts that could be harvested. I have taken 7 cuttings so far, all have rooted, and just tonight I was able to take another 5, keeping my fingers crossed ;-)

I like the idea of taking cuttings, I suppose next winter I will do my best to harvest the tubers, but definately cuttings will be something I do next spring! It seems to me an easy way to get many plants out of only one or two tubers!

I ordered all my tubers from them in October! I had a crazy day. I used them last year, the first year I tried dahlias. A third of them didn't grow but I am sure i am to blame for it! I am hoping to do better this year with them I have already received them and I am just waiting to plant!

I,ve ordered for several years from Swan Island with very good luck.the one on your list called Seduction is a gorgeous bloom! I am sure you will like it.

Best answer I could give would be smaller shorter varieties are more likely to have more blooms at the beginning of August no matter where you live. They simply don't require the same effort as the dinner plates.

Cheers,
Russ

I plant my dahlias around the first of May here in kansas.zone 6...
the smaller bedding dahlias bloom first and thruout the summer....the tubers vary in blooming time depending on the variety
the small and medium ones from first to mid summer and continue until frost
the dinner plates are later to bloom for me but much worth waiting for.......

I am a dahlia newbie but ordered some from The Dahlia Guy. I haven't received these yet. Walmart had some so I bought a pack and potted them. From what I'd read about how to store them, it seemed the Walmart tubers had not been properly prepped last fall. As such, I didn't have much hope. Maybe three weeks later, all three Walmart tubers have green growth. I ended up with two tuber packs completely buried and one had the stem sticking out of the dirt a bit. They all look alike now. The buried ones came up first.

I was hesitant to grow dahlias in the past, due to having to dig and store them in the fall, but I now think it'll be worth the effort.

NOW, I just need DH to build some trellises and figure out how to protect them from bugs...

Some dahlias take WAY longer to sprout than others. I have one that doesn't wake up until almost June but by July/August it's blooming it's head off at about the same time as all the rest.
Ellie

I traded for a Mingus Nicole tuber and have it in a pot to take cuttings. The sprout has just started and when it is about 2 inches long, I will cut it off and root it in some sterile potting mix. I have wanted this one for about five years and have never seen it for less than $10.00. I am looking forward to growing it again and it is one of the prettiest large dahlias available. Tubers are notorious for rotting in storage.

Thanks, Ted, for both of your responses.
"Tubers are notorious for rotting in storage." This is the type of information I find invaluable from this forum. It tells me how to care for a "special needs" Dahlia. I will take cuttings as you did and grow it on as a pot tuber. It should store more reliably than the normal process.
BTW - I located it for $3.00 (US).